Mexico's Supreme Court rules right to life from conception is unconstitutional

The ruling, stemming from a case out of Sinaloa state, has implications for Mexican states that have laws to defend a right to life from conception and put women at risk of prosecution for aborting a pregnancy. The court's decision, another blow to conservatives in the predominantly-Catholic nation, came days after its watershed ruling that penalizing abortion is unconstitutional, a major victory for reproductive rights activists.

Mexico's supreme court ruled on Thursday that the protection of "life from conception" was unconstitutional, doubling down on its decision earlier this week that abortion was not a crime. The ruling, stemming from a case out of Sinaloa state, has implications for Mexican states that have laws to defend a right to life from conception and put women at risk of prosecution for aborting a pregnancy.

The court's decision, another blow to conservatives in the predominantly-Catholic nation, came days after its watershed ruling that penalizing abortion is unconstitutional, a major victory for reproductive rights activists. Hundreds of mostly poor Mexican women have been prosecuted for abortion, while at least several dozen remain jailed.