Hodes & Nauser, MDS, P.A. v. Schmidt

*466Section 1 of the Kansas Constitution Bill of Rights provides: "All men are possessed of equal and inalienable natural rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." We are now asked: Is this declaration of rights more than an idealized aspiration? And, if so, do the substantive rights include a woman's right to make decisions about her body, including the decision whether to continue her pregnancy? We answer these questions, "Yes."

We conclude that, through the language in section 1, the state's founders acknowledged that the people had rights that preexisted the…