A judge in Louisiana has lifted a temporary restraining order on Louisiana's trigger laws allowing the state to proceed with its abortion ban. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI |
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July 9 (UPI) -- Louisiana can legally ban almost all abortions, at least until a pending court date, after a judge lifted a temporary order blocking the state's trigger laws.
On Friday, District Court Judge Ethel Julien refused to extend a June 27 restraining order on the state's abortion ban after a number of court challenges by local abortion providers was moved to another jurisdiction. That means Louisiana's abortion ban went into effect Friday and will remain until the time it takes to obtain a new ruling.
Louisiana is one of 13 states with automatic trigger laws banning abortion. The state's ban was triggered June 24 after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, making nearly all abortions illegal including for rape or incest. Louisiana does not ban abortion if there is a risk of death or permanent injury.
After the Supreme Court ruling, a lawsuit led by the Center for Reproductive Rights and the Boies Schiller law firm, on behalf of Hope Medical Group for Women, challenged Louisiana's trigger laws, calling them "vague" because they do not have a "clear and unambiguous effective date" and "lack adequate standing for enforceability." Orleans Parish Civil District Judge Robin Giarrusso agreed and temporarily blocked the bans.
Since Giarrusso's ruling, two abortion clinics in Louisiana, Women's Health Care Center Delta Clinic of Baton Rouge and Hope Medical Group for Women, have continued to see patients but as of Friday will have to stop.
According to Julien's ruling, the court will now transfer the case to the 19 Judicial District Court in Baton Rouge. A new court date has not been set.
Louisiana's governor signed a new abortion bill three days before Roe v. Wade was overturned that would increase penalties and give the state some of the most restrictive rules in the country. It raises prison terms for abortion providers to a maximum of 10 years with fines climbing to between $10,000 and $100,000.
"My position on abortion has been unwavering," Gov. John Bel Edwards said last month. "I am pro-life and have never hidden from that fact."
