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Justices doubtful on Mass abortion buffer zone law

By Mark Sherman
Published January 15, 2014 7:42pm ET
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Justices doubtful on Mass abortion buffer zone law
This photo taken Dec. 17, 2013 shows anti-abortion protester Eleanor McCullen, of Boston, standing at the painted edge of a buffer zone outside a Planned Parenthood location in Boston. The regulation of protests outside abortion clinics returns to the Supreme Court for the first time since 2000 to find the justices seemingly more protective of speech and less committed to abortion rights. That combination could prove difficult to overcome for the state of Massachusetts as it seeks to defend a law, in arguments at the high court on Jan. 15, that prohibits abortion protests any closer than 35 feet from the entrance to clinics. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) | Steven Senne

WASHINGTON (AP) — A 35-foot protest-free zone outside Massachusetts abortion clinics appeared unlikely to survive Supreme Court review after liberal and conservative justices alike expressed misgivings about the law in arguments Wednesday.

Lawyers for both sides faced tough questions about the Massachusetts law aimed at ensuring patient access and safety at abortion clinics. Nationwide, clinics have dealt with threats and violence, including the shooting deaths of two employees in Boston-area clinics in 1994.

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