It’s been on the record books for nearly 15 years now, but until November of 2009, Illinois’ parental notification act has been put on ice by court order. The law mandates that the parent or legal guardian of a girl aged 17 or younger who is seeking an abortion must be informed at least 48 hours before the abortion takes place.  It does not mandate parental consent.

Yesterday the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) testified regarding the potential for irreparable harm to teenage girls who are forced to notify their parents, as well as the dual standard created for girls who continue their pregnancies –and are able to make health decisions without notifying their parents–while those who chose to terminate cannot make their own decisions.

During the two-hour court hearing, the ACLU outlined its arguments. Attorney Lorie Chaiten said most teenagers seek parental counsel when it comes to abortion, but there are cases in which involving parents could cause harm.

 She cited cases in which teenagers feared retribution from parents — like beatings or getting kicked out of the house — and said the alternate option would force a teen to reveal personal details about her life to a judge and would delay the process.

Chaiten said the law also discriminates against teens who seek abortions, since those who go through a pregnancy are allowed to make medical decisions on their own, such as whether to have a Cesarean.

“The law is utterly irrational,” she said in court.

Unlike parental consent laws, a parent does not need to give permission for the teenager to have the abortion, making the notification process more of a “tattling” procedure coupled with a waiting period.

Amanda Marcotte wrote recently about the use of parental consent laws as simply a way to force teenage girls into unwanted motherhood via complicated consent tasks and biased judicial bypass reviews.

The judge is expected to rule on the notification act’s restraining order on March 29th.  The full court history of the act and its previous reasons for non-enforcement can be found here.