"Physicians are now on notice that all abortions, except those necessary to save a woman’s life, are illegal ... and that additional criminal and regulatory sanctions may apply to abortions performed after fifteen weeks’ gestation," the ruling reads.
All of Arizona's justices were appointed by Republican governors.
The vote of the Arizona Supreme Court was 4-2.
One immediate effect of the ruling could be more support for a potential ballot measure in the works for this year. Advocates say they've already got more than 500,000 signatures, well above the threshold of 383,923 signatures needed by an early July deadline.
The state Supreme Court's ruling puts a stark choice before voters: Choose the new reproductive rights measure or watch abortion policy turn back to the 19th century.
That black-and-white choice, as well as an anticipated increase in turnout by Democrats because of the ballot measure, could also affect races in the state Legislature or other offices.
"We have an opportunity to change things at the ballot in November.”--Chris Love, a spokesperson for the ballot measure known as Arizona for Abortion Access.
US Supreme Court ruling paved way for return of 1864 law
The abortion ban first codified in Arizona law in 1864 has been sitting on the books for 160 years.
First appearing in the 1864 Howell Code, a book of laws compiled by Arizona's First Territorial Legislature, the state's abortion ban was similar to those in many states. It was enforced vigorously in Arizona until the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973.
For almost 50 years, legal abortions were considered a fact of American life, until the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling in June 2022 that removed the Roe protections.
The ruling by the new, more conservative [TRUMP] U.S. Supreme Court, spurred Arizona Republican politicians to ask the courts to... allow police and prosecutors to enforce the 1864 law.