Special Edition Gynotician: Michael Boggs’ Women’s Health Record Shows He's Not Ready for a Lifetime Judicial Appointment

Meet former Georgia state legislator turned appeals court Judge Michael P. Boggs. During his time in the Georgia state legislature, this lawmaker voted for a ban for same-sex marriage saying on the House floor that “we seldom have opportunities to stand up for things that are common sense, things that stand up for Christian values.” He voted to keep the Confederate insignia on the state flag and to chip away at women’s access to safe and legal abortion.

In 2001, Boggs voted for an amendment requiring Internet profiles of all abortion providers, including how many procedures they performed. These medically unnecessary requirements have been know to make abortion doctors a target, opening them up to harassment. “The Democratic leader of the state House at the time warned that the effects of such a measure could put physicians at risk,” reports NARAL.

In 2002, Boggs voted in favor of creating a committee — not of medical experts or doctors — but of leading opponents of safe and legal abortion including the executive director of Georgia Right to Life to “study” the so-called effects of “post-abortion stress syndrome.” Such “syndromes” do not exist and have been scientifically discredited by multiple medical and scientific organizations, including the American Psychological Association and the American Psychiatric Association. In fact, The American Psychological Association's Task Force on Mental Health and Abortion has stated that there is "no evidence that having a single abortion causes mental health problems."

While still serving in the state legislature in 2003, Boggs voted — not once, but twice — in favor of extreme and dangerous so called “personhood” efforts. By redefining “person” in state law to include fertilized eggs, so-called “personhood” efforts could interfere with personal, private medical decisions relating to decisions about birth control, access to fertility treatment, management of a miscarriage, and access to safe and legal abortion if enacted. These bills described children as “born and unborn” which creates a legal framework for personhood.

Boggs also co-sponsored the creation of a “Choose Life” license plate program that, if enacted, would have directed funds to anti-women’s health organizations, including crisis pregnancy centers, which provide biased and often completely false information to women seeking health care information about their pregnancy options. In fact, these bills actually stated that funds “may not be distributed to any agency that is involved or associated with abortion activities, including counseling for or referrals to abortion clinics, providing medical abortion-related procedures, or pro-abortion advertising.”

Why should we care about some former state legislator whose record on women’s health is appalling? Because he’s a nominee for the federal circuit court and it’s a lifetime appointment.

That’s why Boggs is featured in our Special Edition Gynotician. He has a record. He’s earned it.

 

 

Tags: Gynotician of the Week, Gynotician, Michael Boggs, Georgia, Courts