Judge decides next steps on Ohio’s abortion ban
through: JULIE CARR SMYTH Associated Press
Posted:
Updated:
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio judge was scheduled to hear arguments Friday over whether to extend a block on Ohio law that bans virtually all abortions on a more permanent basis.
Hamilton County Judge Christian Jenkins previously decided to stay the law until Oct. 12 after it went into effect in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s repeal of federal abortion protections in June.
This was the second 14-day break Jenkins ordered in a lawsuit filed by Ohio’s ACLU on behalf of the state’s remaining abortion providers. He noted that their lawsuit “would very likely prevail on the merits.”
He must now decide whether to issue an injunction that would pause the law while the litigation progresses.
The lawsuit argues that the abortion ban violates safeguards in the state constitution that guarantee individual liberty and equal protection. It also says the law is unconstitutionally vague.
Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed the law into law in April 2019. It banned most abortions after the first detectable “fetal heartbeat.” Heart activity can be detected as early as the sixth week of pregnancy, or before many people know they are pregnant.
The law was initially blocked by a legal challenge, but went into effect after the landmark Roe v. Wade was repealed by 1973.
https://www.wane.com/top-stories/judge-to-decide-next-steps-on-ohio-heartbeat-abortion-ban/ Judge decides next steps on Ohio’s abortion ban
