Arizona Revised Statutes 13-3603 (1864), or ARS 13-3603, was a territorial law enacted in 1864 before Arizona was granted statehood that banned abortion in any circumstances except when the mother’s life is at risk. The law remained in place even after Arizona was granted statehood in 1912 and reflected the nineteenth- and twentieth-century legal approach to abortion across the United States. However, the US Supreme Court Case Roe v. Wade (1973), hereafter Roe, overturned the statute by establishing a federal constitutional right to abortion, and made ARS 13-3603 unenforceable. The law has since been significant in legal discourse following the federal law Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022), hereafter Dobbs, which overturned Roe and allowed state governments to re-enforce pre-existing abortion laws, including ARS 13-3603. By allowing states to reinstate pre-existing abortion restrictions, the Dobbs decision enabled the territorial law ARS 13-3603 to re-enter legal discussions after Dobbs.

Arizona Senate Bill 1164 (2022), or SB 1164, prohibited abortions after fifteen weeks of pregnancy except when necessary to protect the life or health of the mother. The Arizona Senate and the Arizona House of Representatives passed SB 1164, and then-governor Douglas Ducey signed the bill into law on 30 March 2022. The passage of SB 1164 reinforced the state’s ability to regulate abortions following the US Supreme Court decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022) decision, hereafter Dobbs, which overturned the federal law Roe v. Wade (1973), hereafter Roe. Roe had established abortion as a constitutional and federal right and prohibited states from banning abortions before fetal viability. Roe defined fetal viability as the point when the fetus has a chance of surviving outside the womb without extreme medical help. Dobbs returned the regulatory rights to the states. Arizona’s SB 1164 has helped shape the legal framework concerning reproductive rights in the state by prohibiting abortions after fifteen weeks and replaced Arizona’s previous 1864 law titled Arizona Revised Statutes 13-3603, or ARS 13-3603.

Sherri Chessen, also known as Sherri Finkbine, a television host who lived in Scottsdale, Arizona, during the 1960s, sought an abortion after learning that the sedative thalidomide caused fetal deformities. At the time, Arizona law only allowed abortions if the mother’s life was at risk. Chessen anonymously contacted The Arizona Republic, a local newspaper, and a reporter, Julian DeVries, told Chessen’s story in an article titled, “Pill May Cost Woman Her Baby.” Chessen’s identity later became public when the Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, where Chessen was to have the abortion, filed a suit to get the state’s approval to authorize the abortion. After her name became public, the hospital refused to perform the abortion, leading Chessen to travel to Sweden for the procedure. Chessen’s case led to widespread discussion about abortion access in the United States, brought the issue of reproductive rights into the national spotlight, and eventually influenced legal reforms, including the US Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade (1973).

The American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, or ACLU of Arizona, is an organization that protects individual liberties through support for legislation, litigation of problematic laws, and public education. Tucson, Arizona, residents Alice Bendheim, Helen Mautner, and Cornelius Steelink established the ACLU of Arizona on 22 June 1959 in Phoenix, Arizona, and Tucson, Arizona. Among other activities, the ACLU of Arizona challenges restrictive abortion laws in Arizona through litigation, advocacy, and public education. The ACLU of Arizona is part of the national ACLU, which advocates for the rights of all people in the United States. Attorneys managed two chapters in Arizona in 1959, with the goals of influencing policy against systemic injustice and protecting the civil rights of all Arizonans. The ACLU of Arizona is one of the largest organizations that advocates against restrictive abortion laws through filing legal motions to safeguard abortion access and supporting initiatives like the Arizona for Abortion Access proposition, to ensure reproductive freedom and uphold the right to access abortion for people in Arizona.