Lawsuit Filed Challenging Alabama’s Abortion Law
The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Alabama, and Planned Parenthood filed a federal lawsuit Friday seeking to block Alabama’s strict new abortion law.
“We are proud to take this fight to the state,” says Staci Fox, president of Planned Parenthood Southeast. “They asked for it, and we promised it, and today we delivered.”
Alabama’s law, which was signed by Governor Kay Ivey last week, makes it a felony to perform an abortion at any stage of pregnancy with the only exception for a serious health risk to the woman. There’s no exception for rape or incest. A doctor convicted under the law could face up to 99 years in prison.
The lawsuit says the near ban is unconstitutional and would harm women.
“We hope our state’s elected leaders take note and stop using taxpayer dollars on a legal gamble that they know is unconstitutional and unenforceable,” says Randall Marshall, executive director of the ACLU of Alabama.
BREAKING: The @ACLU, @ACLUAlabama and @PPFA filed a lawsuit this morning to block #Alabama’s new law that would ban almost all #abortions in the state. You can read a statement by ACLU below: https://t.co/gMD2Xw6lVk
— WBHM 90.3 FM (@WBHM) May 24, 2019
A spokesman for Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall says Marshall is reviewing the lawsuit and has no further comment.
Supporters of the law say it’s designed to challenge the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide. They also say they expect to lose at the lower court level. Their hope is that the addition of two conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme Court, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, will mean the high court rules in their favor.
Alabama’s law is part of a wave of state laws that restrict the procedure. Recently approved laws in Georgia, Mississippi, Kentucky and Ohio ban abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected. None of the laws have taken effect and all are expected to be blocked by the courts as the legal challenges play out with an ultimate eye on the Supreme Court.
This story includes reporting from the Associated Press.
Updated 11:30 a.m. to include comment from Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office
Pentagon says it’s cutting ties with ‘woke’ Harvard, ending military training
Amid an ongoing standoff between Harvard and the White House, the Defense Department said it plans to cut ties with the Ivy League — ending military training, fellowships and certificate programs.
‘Washington Post’ CEO resigns after going AWOL during massive job cuts
Washington Post chief executive and publisher Will Lewis has resigned just days after the newspaper announced massive layoffs.
In this Icelandic drama, a couple quietly drifts apart
Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason weaves scenes of quiet domestic life against the backdrop of an arresting landscape in his newest film.
After the Fall: How Olympic figure skaters soar after stumbling on the ice
Olympic figure skating is often seems to take athletes to the very edge of perfection, but even the greatest stumble and fall. How do they pull themselves together again on the biggest world stage? Toughness, poise and practice.
They’re cured of leprosy. Why do they still live in leprosy colonies?
Leprosy is one of the least contagious diseases around — and perhaps one of the most misunderstood. The colonies are relics of a not-too-distant past when those diagnosed with leprosy were exiled.
This season, ‘The Pitt’ is about what doesn’t happen in one day
The first season of The Pitt was about acute problems. The second is about chronic ones.
