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Women’s rights groups welcomed the decision but warned that it could be overturned by the conservatively controlled Supreme Court.
A federal judge temporarily blocked the Texas state’s almost complete ban on abortion, the most stringent law of this kind in the United States. After the U.S. Supreme Court allowed it to take effect, President Joe Biden’s administration challenged it.
The action taken by U.S. District Judge Robert Pittman in Austin on Wednesday prevented the state from enforcing a Republican-backed law that prohibits women from having an abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, while lawsuits for its legality continue.
The case is part of a fierce legal battle over abortion in the United States, and many states have tried to impose restrictions on the procedure.
Pittman said in the ruling: “This court will no longer approve this offensive deprivation of such an important right.”
Suddenly: The Federal Court is only temporarily blocked #SB8-Currently. This is an important step in the fight for reproductive freedom, but the fight for abortion in Texas is far from over. #BansOffOurBodies
— Nalal (@纳拉尔) October 7, 2021
Whole Woman’s Health, an organization that advocates women’s right to choose abortion, welcomed the decision, saying: “Texans should no longer tolerate this cruel ban.”
But the organization pointed out that the blockade was only temporary, adding that “we still have a long way to go.”
Biden’s Department of Justice sued Texas on September 9 and sought a temporary injunction, arguing at a hearing on October 1 that the measure violated the U.S. Constitution.
“Anti-abortion bounty hunter”
The U.S. Supreme Court voted 5 to 4 on September 1 to allow the law to take effect, and the bill is led by conservative judges.
At six weeks of pregnancy, many women don’t even know that they are pregnant. The law does not make any exceptions to pregnancy caused by rape or incest.
It also enables citizens to enforce the ban, and if they succeed in prosecuting anyone who helps provide abortions after detecting fetal heart activity, they will receive a reward of at least $10,000. Critics of the law say that this provision enables people to act as bounty hunters against abortion.
The Ministry of Justice argued that the law prevented women from exercising their constitutional right to terminate pregnancy, and the Supreme Court recognized this right in its decision in Roe v. Wade. The landmark ruling in 1973 legalized abortion across the United States.
Demonstrators supporting abortion rights debated outside the U.S. Supreme Court in March as judges heard a key abortion case regarding the legality of the Republican-backed Louisiana law that imposes restrictions on abortion doctors. [File: Tom Brenner/Reuters]The department also argued that the law improperly interfered with the operation of the federal government to provide abortion-related services.
Texas Governor and Republican Greg Abbott defended the legality of the state’s abortion law. The office said in a statement: “The most precious freedom is life itself.”
The office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling.
Planned Parenthood stated that the preliminary injunction means that Texas courts cannot accept lawsuits brought under the law.
Planned Parenthood CEO Alexis McGill Johnson said in a statement: “The relief granted by the court today has expired. We are grateful that the Department of Justice has taken prompt action to seek relief.”
Johnson said she hopes the ban will enable abortion providers in Texas to resume services as soon as possible.
Pittman’s lawsuit can be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans, a conservative institution that previously allowed the Texas abortion ban to continue. Pittman was appointed by former Democratic President Barack Obama.
American conservatives have long tried to overturn the Roe v. Wade case.
Last December, the Supreme Court heard another case involving Mississippi’s law prohibiting abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Mississippi has asked the High Court to overturn the 1973 precedent.
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