[ad_1]
A district court judge on Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order blocking Texas SB 8’s abortion law, ruling in favor of the US Department of Justice, which had requested the order to prevent entry into force of law.
“A person’s constitutional right to choose to have an abortion prior to fetal viability is well established. Fully aware that to deny its citizens this right through direct state action would be blatantly unconstitutional, the state has put in place an unprecedented and transparent legislative regime to do just that, ”wrote U.S. District Judge Robert Pittman, of the Western District of Texas, Austin Division, in a 113-page decision.
READ THE DECISION HERE
Texas law, signed by Republican Governor Greg Abbott in May, prohibits abortions once healthcare professionals can detect heart activity, usually around six weeks and before many women know they are pregnant. Rather than asking the state to enforce the ban, the law creates a private right of action against those who commit or assist and encourage an abortion that violates the law – but not against the woman undergoing the procedure.
PELOSI INITIATES ROE V. WADE BILL AFTER SUPREME COURT ALLOWS TEXAS ABORTION ACT TO COME INTO FORCE
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals had dismissed stay requests when abortion providers sought to prevent the law from coming into force until a court dispute was resolved. The plaintiffs appealed to the Supreme Court, but the Supreme Court allowed the law to come into force. The Justice Department under President Biden then filed a motion to block the law, and Pittman ruled on that motion.
Justice Pittman ruled that Texas had “deliberately bypassed the traditional process” under the Constitution and “drafted the law with the intention of preventing review by federal courts which have an obligation to protect rights. same as the law probably violates “.
He ruled that Texas violated Roe v. Precedents. Wade, the 1973 ruling that defends the right to abortion, and ordered the state not to enforce the law.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The judge added that the injunction prevents responders, who have expressed an intention to prosecute people who aid or encourage abortions that violate SB 8, from prosecuting.
“Since the entry into force of SB 8, women have been unlawfully prevented from exercising control over their lives in a way that is constitutionally protected,” Pitman wrote, citing the fact that many facilities for state abortion went out of business for fear of prosecution under the law. “It is up to them to decide whether other courts can find a way to avoid this conclusion; this Court will not one more day sanction this offensive deprivation of such an important right.”
Yet despite this decision, abortion providers may still fear facing legal action until a full legal resolution of the case.
Texas will likely seek an early overturn from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which previously allowed the law to come into force.
Attorney General Merrick Garland hailed the judge’s ruling as a victory for women and the rule of law.
“Today’s decision enforcing Texas law is a victory for women in Texas and for the rule of law. It is the Department of Justice’s primary responsibility to uphold the Constitution. We will continue to protect women. constitutional rights against anyone who seeks to undermine them, ”he said in a statement.
[ad_2]
Source link