Tennessee Legislature Continues to Push Constitutionally Questionable Bills Despite Mixed Results and Public Disapproval

Tennessee: Constitutionally Questionable Bills Face Mixed Results

This year saw Tennessee Legislature slow down in their onslaught on Metro Nashville with legally suspect laws, but still managed to produce a number of constitutionally questionable bills. Prominent Republican legislators are seemingly angling for a showdown in the U.S. Supreme Court, reminiscent of when the Legislature passed an abortion “trigger ban” in hopes the high court would reverse Roe v. Wade.

Circa 1973, the court did decline the law, which now gives state legislatures the authority to prohibit abortions. This calls for thought over the emerging trend of certain lawmakers at both state and federal levels to control people’s bodies. This point was underscored further by the recent announcement made by former President Donald Trump declaring a potential move to restrict contraception.

Death Penalty on Child Rape: Contravening a Supreme Court Ruling?

In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty is unconstitutional in cases of child rape. Despite this, state lawmakers, with an ultra-conservative court at the helm, passed a bill permitting prosecutors to seek the death penalty for convicts of child rape, alongside life imprisonment and life without parole.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed this into law back in early May. However, according to the Associated Press, the Governor’s motivation wasn’t to provoke a Supreme Court reversal, but because of his belief that child rape is a “heinous” crime.

Some Republican lawmakers privately admitted to having reservations about the bill during their sessions, fearing that opposing it might portray them as lenient on child rape, especially in a GOP primary. Following their apprehensions, they nevertheless voted for the measure backed by House Republican Majority Leader William Lamberth of Portland.

With Tennessee’s Legislature advocating change, a case in Florida, where a similar law was ratified under the leadership of Gov. Ron DeSantis, could potentially become the high court’s test, says the AP.

Opposition and the Future

Critics of the bill argued that such a law might deter victims from coming forward, particularly if the offender is a close relative such as a father, uncle, or stepfather. Their concerns, however, may have fallen on deaf ears.

Similarly, the Legislature this year also passed prohibitions against any individuals, other than a parent or guardian, escorting a minor out of state for an abortion or to receive transgender-affirming treatment. The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, a frequent critic of the Legislature’s constitutionally questionable bills, has written to Gov. Lee urging him not to sign the abortion transportation bill.

The ACLU argues that the bill compels minors to “disclose their pregnancy status in potentially unsafe home environments and limits their ability to access the support of those they trust when they need it most.” It is yet unclear if the governor ever pays heed to the ACLU, despite their superior track record in court compared to the state.

Abortion Travel Restrictions for Minors – Passing or Failing the Litmus Test of Public Approval?

Tennessee is already noted for having some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, and this year’s abortion travel restriction for minors only ups the ante. However, according to Vanderbilt’s most recent statewide poll, the majority of voters, 52%, identify themselves as pro-choice.

Moreover, the poll also shows a shift from May 2024 when 45% of registered voters considered themselves as “definitely” or “somewhat” pro-choice, and up from 48% merely two years prior. “There is clear evidence that Tennessee is a ‘pro-exception’ state, with voters accepting of the right to choice in cases such as rape, incest, the health of a mother or fetal viability, but now the state has moved into the pro-choice camp,” remarked Vanderbilt’s John Geer, who co-heads the poll.

Despite the poll, one should not anticipate a wave of abortion exceptions in the future. This is because Republican leaders generally disregard the majority of Tennesseans’ opinion, focusing only on how they appear to voters in a primary influenced by Tennessee Right to Life and other hardline GOP groups.

Clearly, constitutionally questionable bills continue to dominate the political discourses and agendas in Tennessee, taking precedence over evidential public perception and even Supreme Court rulings. This fuels uncertainty, and potentially legal challenges, around the fairness and legality of such laws, moving forward.