Kentucky woman seeking right to abortion drops lawsuit
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People protesting for and against a constitutional amendment related to abortion in October 2022. Photo: Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
A Kentucky woman who filed a class-action lawsuit to challenge the state's two restrictive abortion bans dropped the lawsuit on Monday, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
The big picture: The dismissal came after the woman, identified as Jane Doe in the suit, discovered that her embryo no longer had cardiac activity.
Catch up quickly: The former plaintiff was eight weeks pregnant when the lawsuit was filed. It argued that Kentucky's abortion bans violate the state's constitution by infringing on the "rights to privacy and self-determination."
- Kentucky's trigger abortion law, which went into effect immediately after Roe was overturned, banned abortions unless the procedure is necessary to save a pregnant person's life or to prevent a debilitating injury.
- The state has a separate six-week abortion ban.
- Neither of the laws provides exceptions for rape, incest or fatal fetal anomalies.
Driving the news: The lawsuit is yet another case where a woman sued for the right to an abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
- It was filed one day after the Texas Supreme Court ruled that Kate Cox, who was seeking an abortion in the state, was not permitted to obtain one. At the time of the ruling, Cox had already left Texas to undergo the emergency procedure in another state.
What they're saying: The ACLU, which represented the woman, said on Monday that the bans and subsequent rulings by the state's supreme court have "backed Kentuckians into a corner."
- "The court's decision has forced Kentuckians seeking abortion to bring a lawsuit while in the middle of seeking time-sensitive health care, a daunting feat, and one that should not be necessary to reclaim the fundamental right to control their own bodies," it said.
- It encouraged any other pregnant people seeking an abortion in Kentucky to reach out if they are interested in filing a lawsuit.
Of note: Doe's lawsuit argued that the bans violated the state's constitution because Kentucky voters last year rejected a proposed amendment that would have declared that nothing in the document could be used to protect a person's right to an abortion.
- Following the vote, the state's ban was contested in the Kentucky Supreme Court, which ruled that abortion providers lacked standing to challenge the laws on behalf of their patients.
- The ruling did not amount to the court determining whether the state's constitution protects the right to receive an abortion, leaving the door open to additional challenges to the bans.
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