By ACACIA CORONADO (Associated Press)
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A man in Texas is asking a court to allow a legal action to uncover who assisted his former partner in getting an out-of-state abortion. This sets up a new test of the limits of statewide abortion bans.
As some states work to expand abortion access and others impose more limits following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe V. Wade, antiabortion activists have started challenging statewide bans in court. Abortion supporters consider these legal actions as a scare tactic, and emphasize that crossing state lines to obtain an abortion remains legal.
Both sides agree the Texas case could test the meaning of “leave it to the states,” a phrase echoed by former President Donald Trump on the campaign trail.
WHAT IS HAPPENING IN TEXAS?
Documents related to this Texas petition have been kept private by the court for the woman’s safety, but according to The Washington Post, which first reported the legal action, the man’s attorney is Jonathan Mitchell, a former Texas solicitor general and architect of Texas’ strict abortion ban. Representing the woman is the Center for Reproductive Rights and attorneys at Arnold and Porter.
Her attorneys say the man has made a “Rule 202” request — a filing that usually precedes a lawsuit when illegal activity is suspected. If approved, the court could allow the man to seek documents related to the alleged procedure and order the woman and others accused of helping her to sit for depositions.
The Texas abortion ban provides for enforcement either through a private civil action or under the state’s criminal statutes, which were updated to prohibit nearly all abortions, punishable by up to life in prison for anyone held responsible for helping a woman obtain one.
This is the first legal action they’ve seen to assert that women can’t leave Texas to get an abortion somewhere else, said Marc Hearron, a senior counsel at the center.
“Being involved in or helping someone get a legal abortion outside of Texas is legal,” said Hearron. “There is nothing wrong with it.”
Mitchell did not immediately respond to multiple calls from The Associated Press seeking comment.
“The limit on the ability to travel is a step beyond what I think we have seen anywhere,” said Michelle Simpson Tuegel, an attorney who specializes in women’s rights cases. “I pray we are not living in times where our high courts are going to say that our home states can trap us when we are pregnant.”
THE STATE OF INTERSTATE ABORTION ACCESS
Since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the nationwide right to abortion two years ago, a looming question has been how states with bans might try to stop their residents from obtaining abortions in states where they’re legal.
At least 14 states controlled by Democrats have passed laws seeking to protect providers and others who help people obtain abortions in their states. Some also protect people who prescribe abortion pills via telemedicine to people in states with bans.
Idaho has put in place a ban on what it describes as “abortion trafficking,” which aims to stop the transportation of minors out of state for an abortion without parental permission, but its enforcement is currently on hold due to a federal judge's decision. Tennessee lawmakers approved a similar measure last month, but Republican Gov. Bill Lee has not yet signed it. Alabama’s attorney general stated that his office would “look at” groups assisting women with abortions. In response, the U.S. Department of Justice, an abortion fund, and former providers filed a court request to stop such investigations. A federal judge ruled on Monday that most of their lawsuit can proceed..
four counties in Texas have enacted local measures
And , which can be enforced through lawsuits by private citizens, to prevent the use of specific roads to facilitate getting an abortion.TESTING THE LIMITS OF THE STATES
Anti-abortion groups are using the courts to test the extent to which these restrictions can be enforced and who can be held responsible.
In a different case in Galveston
, Mitchell is also representing a Texas man who is suing three of his ex-wife’s friends, accusing them of wrongful death and seeking $1 million in damages for assisting her in obtaining the pills she needed to self-induce an abortion.Abortion supporters argue that Mitchell’s lawsuits are intended to intimidate, and emphasize that crossing state lines for abortions remains legal.
John Seago, president of the antiabortion group Texas Right to Life, stated that these lawsuits will help clarify how the laws will be enforced and who can be held accountable as states grapple with abortion-related questions.
“At the very least we have to support each state to fully enforce their laws,” Seago said, arguing that other states cannot have the authority to “sabotage” Texas’ laws.
By ACACIA CORONADO (Associated Press) AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas man is petitioning a court to authorize an obscure legal action to find out who allegedly helped his former partner obtain an out-of-state abortion, setting up the latest test of the reach of statewide abortion bans. As some states work to expand abortion access […]
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