Teen not mature enough to get an abortion, Florida court rules

In her petition, according to the appeals court, the teenager wrote that she is still in school and doesn’t have a job, and that “the father is unable to assist her.” Court records indicate she was 10 weeks pregnant at the time she sought a court’s permission to end her pregnancy.

Jane Doe 22-B lives with a relative and has an appointed guardian.

She is pursuing a GED through a program that supports young women who have experienced trauma. She suffered “renewed trauma,” according to the appeals court’s ruling, after the death of a friend. She decided to seek an abortion shortly afterward.

Escambia County Circuit Judge Jennifer Frydrychowicz denied the petition in what one judge with the 1st District Court of Appeal, Scott Makar, said appeared to be “a very close call.” The appeals court upheld Frydrychowicz’s ruling, with a majority of the three-judge panel agreeing that the lower court’s order and findings “are neither unclear nor lacking” in a way that would require reconsideration.

The decision was condemned by Florida lawmakers who support abortion access. State Rep. Anna Eskamani (D) wrote on Twitter that there is “Lots of cruelty in Florida’s anti-abortion policies.”

“Instead of trusting and listening to her,” she wrote of the 16-year-old, “the state forces her to give birth.”

Florida legal experts said it’s difficult to grasp the full context of the case because details from the trial court are sealed, though they questioned why the girl was not appointed a lawyer and why she checked a box on her petition saying she didn’t request one.

Thirty-five states have judicial bypass laws, which allow minors to ask the court to grant them permission to get an abortion where they would otherwise need a parent or guardian’s approval. Florida has among the tougher standards, according to Mary Ziegler, a law professor at the University of California at Davis who formerly taught in Florida on the history, politics and law of reproductive health care. State lawmakers expanded Florida’s parental-involvement law in 2020, requiring that teens not only notify a parent but also obtain their consent.

“Trying to glean what the trial judge was doing is tough,” Ziegler said. “But this is a person who we know has experienced recent trauma and is not an expert in navigating the legal system. That seems to be held against her, or signaled she’s ‘not mature.’ ”

In one puzzling detail from the case, the teen said in her petition that her guardian “is fine with what [she] wants to do.” If the…