Supreme Court Keeps Texas Abortion Ban, Allows Lawsuits

It's a partial victory for advocates of abortion rights
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Dec 10, 2021 9:35 AM CST
SCOTUS Lets Lawsuits Proceed Against Texas Abortion Law
The Supreme Court is seen at dusk in Washington, Oct. 22, 2021.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

The Supreme Court has ruled that Texas abortion providers can sue over the state’s ban on most abortions, but the justices are allowing the law to remain in effect, per the AP. The court acted Friday, more than a month after hearing arguments over the law that makes abortion illegal after cardiac activity is detected in an embryo. That’s around six weeks, before some women even know they are pregnant. The outcome is at best only a partial victory for abortion providers. The same federal judge who already has once blocked the law almost certainly will be asked to do so again. But then his decision will be reviewed by the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which has twice voted to allow enforcement of the abortion ban.

The case could return to the justices, and so far there have not been five votes on the nine-member court to put the law on hold while the legal fight plays out. The court's conservative majority also seems likely to roll back abortion rights in a Mississippi case that was argued last week, although that decision is not expected until June. The high court ruling came a day after a state court judge in Texas ruled that the law’s enforcement, which rewards lawsuits against violators by awarding judgments of $10,000, is unconstitutional yet left the law in place. Texas' law, in effect since Sept. 1, does not allow exceptions for rape or incest.

(More abortion stories.)

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