Statement of Ramona Ripston, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California:

This morning the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act passed by Congress and signed by President Bush in 2003. In its first abortion decision since the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the court ruled 5-4 that the law does not violate the Constitution by imposing an undue burden on a woman's right to end a pregnancy. The American Civil Liberties Union, which filed an amicus brief on behalf of the National Abortion Federation, sharply criticized this decision by the court.

Ramona Ripston, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California, said, "This is a frightening decision. The high court has made a ruling severely limiting a woman's right to choose and this is the most damaging attack on this fundamental right in 30 years."