Pro-Abortion Injunctions Attempt to Delay Abortion Bans

Pro-abortion supporters with Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights wear green as they protest outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on June 15, 2022. Jackson Elliott/The Epoch Times

America’s first post-Roe v. Wade pro-life laws have been delayed by a series of injunctions that have resulted in women continuing to be able to have abortions.

Many have long anticipated that the end of Roe v. Wade would see a flurry of pro-life legislation passed across America.

Even before the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision, 13 states had “trigger laws” that would automatically end or severely limit abortion immediately after Roe’s overturn.

But pro-abortion groups have responded by asking for a series of legal injunctions that delay the application of these laws, although they have often been overturned within a few days.

This strategy has thrown a delay that pro-abortion groups have taken full advantage of.

Abortion clinics face closing as state-level pro-life laws pass across America. Photo of a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis, MO, on June 4, 2019. Jeff Roberson/AP Photo

“Our affiliates, our health centers are fighting to get every single patient in that they can see right now before the state issues an injunction,” said Planned Parenthood president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson.

Trigger laws are on hold in Louisiana, Kentucky, and Utah. Challenges to trigger laws are pending in Idaho, Oklahoma, and Mississippi.

Other states have faced longstanding federal injunctions that are now being overturned.

Although Texas has a “trigger law” that automatically bans abortion after the end of Roe, it won’t take effect for about two months.

However, Texas attorney general Ken Paxton acted to end abortions in the state immediately.

Paxton said the state could enforce an abortion ban dating from 1925, which Roe v. Wade long blocked. Now Texas has begun enforcing the ban again.

Pro-life supporters celebrate outside the Supreme Court in Washington on June 24, 2022. Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

In response, a series of abortion groups attempted to block the ban with a lawsuit.

Groups including the Center for Reproductive Rights and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) argued the ban was repealed by Roe v. Wade and therefore unenforceable.

A press release from the center noted that its injunction was filed in the hopes of performing as many procedures as possible.

“Every day, every hour that abortion remains legal in Texas is a chance for more people to get the care they need.

“The clinics we represent want to help as many patients as they can, down to the last minute,” said Nancy Northup, the center’s president and chief executive.

At the Alamo Women’s Reproductive Services clinic, a preliminary visit and an abortion together cost $650.

In Michigan, Planned Parenthood also sued for an injunction against an old law.

In 1931, Michigan banned abortion. This law was blocked by Roe v. Wade.

Michigan’s attorney general has already announced that she doesn’t intend to enforce her state’s old abortion ban.

But Michigan Judge Elizabeth Gleicher also issued an injunction against the law, saying that women “face a serious danger of irreparable harm if prevented from accessing abortion services.”

Legal Battles Continue

In other states, the attacks on abortion bans come from other sources.

In Florida, Planned Parenthood sued to stop the state’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks from taking effect.

Then, Florida judge John Cooper said he would pass a temporary injunction to stop the law.

He argued the state’s abortion ban violated the Florida Constitution, which grants a right to privacy.

A spokesman for Gov. Ron DeSantis disagreed with the interpretation.

“The Florida Supreme Court previously misinterpreted Florida’s right to privacy as including a right to an abortion, and we reject this,” spokesman Bryan Griffin said.

“The Florida Constitution does not include—and has never included—a right to kill an innocent unborn child.”

In Indiana, the state government has asked for the lifting of a federal injunction that prevented its laws against abortion from taking effect. For now, terminations are still legal there.

Tennessee was in a similar situation, but the federal 6th Circuit Court of Appeals just ended its federal injunction.

Down to the Last Minute

In the states where abortion’s days are numbered, clinics have continued working.

In Mississippi’s only abortion clinic, the Pink House, staff have scheduled extra shifts.

“I will tell you this—any patients who contact us, we will see them,” said its owner Diane Derzis.

“We will make sure we see them in those 10 days. A woman should not have to leave the state to receive health care.”

In Georgia, uncertainty over the future of legal abortion has resulted in increased interest in the procedure.

Calls to Planned Parenthood Southeast have doubled after the overturn of Roe v. Wade.

“We knew that this [Dobbs] ruling was coming, and so in anticipation of that, we have been working over the past several months to create an interstate network of support for patients,” said Lauren Frazier, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood Southeast.

“Right now, the volume for us is still manageable.”

The Epoch Times reached out to Planned Parenthood, the National Network of Abortion Funds, and NARAL Pro-Choice America but received no comment.