LOUISIANA, USA — Louisiana’s only three abortion clinics have reportedly revealed they’re leaving the state as they can no longer perform abortions.
But the legal battle against Louisiana’s anti-abortion laws, Hope v. Landry, will forge ahead anyway.
Right now, abortion is illegal in Louisiana.
Last week, the Louisiana Supreme Court rejected an appeal by the plaintiffs to block the abortion ban while the lawsuit plays out.
There are three laws in Louisiana that were designed to take effect the moment Roe v. Wade was overturned, outlawing all abortions except for those that endanger the life of the parent.
Louisiana is one of only about a dozen states that doesn’t allow abortion exceptions for rape or incest.
And anyone who performs an abortion could face up to 10 years in prison or a $100,000 fine.
Hope Medical Group challenged those laws, saying they overlap, are vague and the medical exceptions haven’t been laid out.
They were granted a temporary restraining order back in June, which allowed abortions to continue in the state.
But the case has ping-ponged from courtroom to courtroom, appeal to appeal, dropping then enforcing the law, until Friday, when the Supreme Court made a decision to keep the trigger laws in place while the lawsuit goes through the courts.
The Center for Reproductive Rights tells us this case has a long way to go. While the hearing doesn’t have a court date yet, both sides are working to get on the schedule in District Court in Baton Rouge.