The landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which established a constitutional right to abortion, was overruled by the Supreme Court on Friday, sparking a surge of protests and litigation around the country.
On Monday, a judge prevented the southern state of Louisiana from enforcing its abortion ban. Meanwhile, in New Mexico, the governor signed an executive order to protect women seeking abortions, and in Texas, the attorney general was accused of threatening abortion providers with criminal prosecution without legal authority.
One of 13 states that introduced “trigger laws” to outlaw or severely restrict abortions after the Supreme Court reversed the 1973 decision is Louisiana. Judge Robin Giarrusso of the Orleans Parish Civil District Court issued a temporary restraining order on Monday preventing Louisiana from doing so.
The lawsuit’s plaintiffs do not contest the state’s right to outlaw abortion. According to local media reports, they argue that Louisiana’s legal trigger mechanisms are complex and contradictory. On July 8, a hearing will be held to determine whether to continue to obstruct the enforcement of the prohibition.
The Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton, was accused by the American Civil Liberties Union of threatening abortion providers in violation of relevant state laws in a complaint that was filed on Monday in Houston on behalf of various healthcare providers.
According to Paxton, Texas’ pre-Roe statutes are now enforceable because the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, and the case requested a state court to temporarily stop those laws from being in effect, according to local media station KXAN.
The lawsuit stated that “Mr. Paxton’s and the Texas Legislature’s attempts to approve the prompt prosecution of abortion providers on the basis of violations of the Pre-Roe Ban must not stand.”
According to local media reports, the trigger ban is set to go into force 30 days after the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, meaning the Texas statute outlawing the majority of abortions won’t go into effect for at least two months. Only recently has the Supreme Court published its ruling.
A executive order protecting women seeking abortions and those who provide the procedure was signed by New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on Monday.
At a press conference, the Democratic governor stated: “We will not further jeopardize the rights and access points of anyone in New Mexico. Residents seeking access will be protected, providers will be protected, and abortion is and will continue to be legal safe and accessible, period.
In a joint statement released on Monday, the attorneys general of 21 states and Washington, D.C., pledged to “use our combined resources” to assist women living in places where abortions are illegal.
Healthcare includes abortion care. Attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington signed the statement, which declared, “Period.
In spite of the fact that the Supreme Court’s ruling violates the rights of Americans nationally and overturns nearly 50 years of legal tradition, they reaffirmed their commitment to promoting and enhancing access to abortion care in a statement.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and an abortion-rights group filed an emergency move in Arizona over the weekend to challenge a state legislation they fear might be used to ban all abortions, while a branch of Planned Parenthood launched a lawsuit in Utah against a trigger ban.
Local media reported that pro-abortion activists in Ohio also want to challenge a Friday-taken-effect ban on abortions after six weeks, noting that a Florida ban on abortions after 15 weeks is also the subject of a request for a temporary restraining order.
Abortion providers have ceased offering their services in at least 11 states as of Saturday. According to New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, the country was engaged in a “national fight.”
According to the Pew Charitable Trusts, 26 states are “certain or likely to ban abortion,” while 16 states, including New York State, provide protection for abortion rights in law or in their constitutions. The most recent 6-3 ruling does not outright ban abortion but instead leaves the decision up to the states.
Michelle Bachelet, the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the United Nations, called the ruling “a major blow to women’s human rights and gender equality,” and Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada, remarked that “the news coming out of the United States is horrible.”
