Federal judge blocks abortion ban in Mississippi, says governor

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On May 24, a federal judge temporarily blocked a Mississippi law banning most abortions once the fetal heart rate is detected, at about six weeks of pregnancy.

The order of US District Judge Carlton Reeves prevents the law from taking effect on July 1.

The governor of Mississippi, Phil Bryant, a Republican, promulgated the law on the "heartbeat" in March.

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Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant (left) attends a meeting of the National Governors Association at the White House in Washington on February 23, 2015. (JIM WATSON / AFP / Getty Images)

Bryant expressed his disappointment with Reeves' decision.

"I am disappointed with the court's decision. As governor, I am committed to doing everything in my power to protect life. Time and time again, the legislature and I have done it. I will encourage the Attorney General to seek an immediate review of the preliminary injunction, "Bryant said in a statement.

Reeves is the same judge who struck down a Mississippi law of 2018 banning abortion at 15 weeks.

Mississippi is one of many states, including Georgia and Alabama, where Republican-controlled legislatures have energetically enlisted life, directly contesting the 1973 Supreme Court decision in the United States. Roe case v.

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The photo shows an examination / procedure room at the Jackson Women's Health Organization in Jackson, Missouri. This facility is the only state abortion clinic. (Rogelio V. Solis / AP)

Bryant signed Bill 2136 (Senate) with the many supporters gathered around him on March 21st. "This is a very important day in the history of Mississippi," Lieutenant Governor Reeves told reporters after the bill. passage. "Many groups, mostly from outside our state, have put a lot of pressure on these members of the legislature, but each of them has stood up.

He stated that the goal was to make "Mississippi the safest place in America for an unborn child".

Unlike some "heartbeat" bills, there are no exceptions in the law for pregnancies caused by rape or incest.

But it contains exceptions if a doctor says that continuing a pregnancy would endanger the woman's life or one of her main bodily functions.

"No one shall knowingly abort a pregnant woman for the specific purpose of provoking or encouraging the end of the life of the unborn human being that the pregnant woman bears and whose heartbeat of the fetus has been detected", wrote the legislator.

"Anyone who performs a medical procedure [after the heartbeat is detected] … Declares in writing, under penalty of perjury, that the medical procedure was necessary, to the best of the reasonable medical judgment of that person, to avoid the death of the pregnant woman or to prevent a serious risk of substantial and irreversible harm to a woman. major body function of the pregnant woman, "says the bill.

Any doctor who violated this law would be subject to a license revocation or disciplinary action.

Context of Roe v. Wade

The Roe v. Wade in 1973 legalized abortion at the national level by banning states from banning abortions before the fetus was considered "viable," that is, to say potentially able to live outside the belly of his mother.

In Roe v. Wade, the United States Supreme Court stated that if unborn children are people, then they have the right to live. The ruling concluded that unborn children were not persons and acknowledged that the ban on states banning abortion "would collapse" if "the fetus is a nobody "because his" right to life would then be guaranteed "by the Constitution.

NTD reporter Zachary Stieber, Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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