An Indiana judge has temporarily blocked the state’s restrictive abortion law just a week after it went into effect.
Owen County Judge Kelsey Hanlon granted a preliminary injunction on Thursday, ruling that there was “reasonable likelihood” that Senate Bill 1 violates the state constitution, after several abortion providers in the state filed a lawsuit, according to an order filed in Monroe Circuit Court.
FDA RELEASES ADDITIONAL DOSES OF MODERNA’S COVID-19 BOOSTER AMID SHORTAGES
The law’s enforcement will be temporarily halted after being enacted on Sept. 15. It prohibits abortions in most circumstances with limited exceptions in cases in which the mother’s serious health or life is at risk, lethal fetal anomaly up to 20 weeks post-fertilization, and rape or incest up to 10 weeks post-fertilization. Abortions that are allowed must also be performed in hospitals or outpatient surgical centers owned by hospitals because it strips abortion providers’ licenses to perform the procedure.
Hanlon, who was handed the case after three Democratic Monroe County judges passed on it, heard arguments from both sides on Tuesday. The American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood of Indiana, among other providers, who filed the lawsuit on Aug. 31, claimed that the law was too restrictive and took away women’s autonomy.
Indiana Solicitor General Tom Fisher argued that it was up to the legislature to decide how abortion was restricted in the state, adding that “unborn children will literally die” without the law, according to WTHR.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The law passed the Republican-controlled Indiana legislature on Aug. 5 and was signed by Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, becoming the first state to enact a restrictive abortion law since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June.
