By The newspaper
01 Aug 2024, 19:25 PM EDT
The Utah Supreme Court has ruled that the state’s near-total abortion ban will remain blocked until a lower court can evaluate its constitutionality, meaning abortion will remain legal up to 18 weeks of pregnancy for the time being.
Medical reproductive services will continue to be legal in Utah for women up to 18 weeks pregnant under a state law that has served as a backup, the Associated Press reported.
The case sent to the lower court
The panel wrote that the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah had legal standing to challenge the state’s abortion-trigger law, and that a lower court acted within its jurisdiction when it initially blocked the ban.
His ruling only concerns whether the restrictions are kept on hold amid new legal proceedings and does not decide the ultimate outcome of abortion policy in the state. The case will now be sent back to a lower court to determine whether the law is constitutional.
The currently blocked bill would ban nearly all abortions except in cases where the mother’s life is in danger or there is a fatal fetal abnormality.
A separate state law passed last year also allows abortions up to 18 weeks of pregnancy in cases of rape or incest.
Law of activation
Utah lawmakers passed the trigger law in 2020 to automatically ban most abortions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. When Roe fell in June 2022, abortion rights advocates in Utah immediately challenged the law, and a district court judge put it on hold a few days later.
Kathryn Boyd, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, welcomed the ruling Thursday, Aug. 1, and told AP she hopes the lower court will ultimately strike down the trigger law so they can continue to serve patients without political interference.
“You can continue to come to us”
“Today’s decision means our patients can continue to turn to us, their trusted health care providers, to access abortion and other essential reproductive services right here in Utah. While we celebrate this victory, we know the fight is not over,” Boyd said.
Republican Gov. Spencer Cox said he was disappointed the court had further delayed implementation of the law, but he hoped it was only a temporary setback.
For his part, Sen. Dan McKay, sponsor of the trigger law, said in an interview with the media that after the ruling, the Legislature will likely try to reduce the current 18-week limit to a six-week limit as a “short-term solution” while the trigger law is mired in litigation. A special legislative session on abortion is a possibility this year, he said.
In a joint statement, Utah’s Republican legislative leaders, Senate President Stuart Adams and House Speaker Mike Schultz, accused the state Supreme Court of undermining the Legislature’s constitutional authority to enact laws for the people of Utah.
Democrats praised the decision
House Democrats, meanwhile, praised the decision and urged their district court colleagues who will review the law to consider how it could endanger the health and well-being of Utah residents.
Besides Utah, the only other ban currently suspended due to a court order is in Wyoming.
With information from AP
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