A judge in Leon County ruled that Florida’s ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy violates the state’s constitution. He issued an injunction on Thursday preventing the ban from going into effect Friday.
Leon County Circuit Judge John C. Cooper listened to attorneys’ closing statements on Thursday after a group of reproductive health care providers challenged the state.
The reproductive health care providers, including Planned Parenthood of South, East, and North Florida, argued the ban violates privacy rights.
House Bill 5, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law in April, was set to reduce the existing 24-week ban starting on Friday — without exceptions for rape, incest, or human trafficking.
“HB 5 directly impacts the sanctity and the privacy of the physician-patient relationship,” Dr. Shelly Tien, a gynecologist for Planned Parenthood, said during her testimony in court on Monday in Tallahassee.
Dr. Ingrid Skop, an obstetrician from Texas, testified in support of the 15-week ban. She is the director of medical affairs for the Charlotte Lozier Institute, an anti-abortion group with The Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C.
“I believe that setting an abortion limit at 15 weeks will significantly improve the safety for women undergoing abortion,” Skop said. “I believe that there is significant data that abortions become substantially more difficult and dangerous after the 15 week of gestation.”
The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Florida, and the law firm Jenner & Block filed the lawsuit on behalf of the health providers on June 1.
“We will do everything in our power to block this cruel attack on Floridians’ fundamental right to get the care they need,” Daniel Tilley, ACLU of Florida’s legal director, said in a statement after the filing.
April Otterberg, a partner at Jenner & Block LLP, also released a statement saying HB5 unconstitutionally limits an individual’s right to access abortion services and the lawsuit seeks to block its implementation.
Related story: Providers urge judge to stop state’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy from going into effect Friday
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Leon County Circuit Judge John C. Cooper listened to attorneys’ closing statements on Thursday after a group of reproductive health care providers challenged the state.
The reproductive health care providers, including Planned Parenthood of South, East, and North Florida, argued the ban violates privacy rights.
House Bill 5, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law in April, was set to reduce the existing 24-week ban starting on Friday — without exceptions for rape, incest, or human trafficking.
“HB 5 directly impacts the sanctity and the privacy of the physician-patient relationship,” Dr. Shelly Tien, a gynecologist for Planned Parenthood, said during her testimony in court on Monday in Tallahassee.
Dr. Ingrid Skop, an obstetrician from Texas, testified in support of the 15-week ban. She is the director of medical affairs for the Charlotte Lozier Institute, an anti-abortion group with The Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C.
“I believe that setting an abortion limit at 15 weeks will significantly improve the safety for women undergoing abortion,” Skop said. “I believe that there is significant data that abortions become substantially more difficult and dangerous after the 15 week of gestation.”
The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Florida, and the law firm Jenner & Block filed the lawsuit on behalf of the health providers on June 1.
“We will do everything in our power to block this cruel attack on Floridians’ fundamental right to get the care they need,” Daniel Tilley, ACLU of Florida’s legal director, said in a statement after the filing.
April Otterberg, a partner at Jenner & Block LLP, also released a statement saying HB5 unconstitutionally limits an individual’s right to access abortion services and the lawsuit seeks to block its implementation.
Related story: Providers urge judge to stop state’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy from going into effect Friday
Related documents
Continue reading...
