Judge Puts Temporary Hold on Abortion Restrictions
Two new Alabama laws restricting abortions were set to go into effect next month, but yesterday, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson blocked them, at least for now.
In the latest chapter of a long-running legal battle, an Alabama law banning a procedure called “dilation and evacuation” and one banning clinics within 2,000 feet of K-8 schools are on hold. They’d been set to take effect August 1, but Thompson issued a temporary restraining order to give the state time to respond to a legal challenge and to give the court more time to consider the case.
Two abortion providers, with help from the ACLU, are suing to have the laws declared unconstitutional. Dilation and evacuation, which the law banning it calls “dismemberment abortion,” is a common second-trimester procedure. The school-proximity ban could close two of Alabama’s five clinics, which account for well more than half the state’s abortions. Supporters of the ban say it protects young students from disruptive protests. Critics say it’s another way to make abortions hard or impossible to get.
Thompson’s order blocking enforcement of the restrictions would expire three weeks from an October 4 hearing.
United Nations nuclear agency again condemns Iran for failing to fully cooperate
The resolution comes after the agency said Iran has defied demands to rein in its nuclear program and has increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
Alabama carries out nation’s 3rd nitrogen gas execution
An Alabama man convicted in the 1994 killing of a hitchhiker cursed at the prison warden shortly before he was put to death Thursday evening in the nation's third execution using nitrogen gas.
Trump names former Florida AG Pam Bondi as his new pick for U.S. attorney general
After former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration, President-elect Donald Trump named Pam Bondi, a former attorney general of Florida, as his next pick for U.S. attorney general.
Police report gives details, timeline of the sexual assault claim against Pete Hegseth
The woman who accused then-Fox News host of sexual assault in 2017 said that she "remembered saying 'no' a lot," according to a police report. Hegseth is President-elect Donald Trump's choice for Secretary of Defense.
Alabama Black Belt’s sewer crisis a tougher fix for residents in manufactured homes
Poor sanitation has long plagued residents in Alabama’s Black Belt. For people with manufactured houses, finding a solution has been more challenging.
In Birmingham, Black men’s groups work to save young men from the cycle of gun violence
As the city inches closer to its homicide record, community members are trying to address a sense of fatalism and lack of opportunity felt by some young men.
