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Kentucky Supreme Court Denies Request to Block Abortion Ban

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OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.


The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state’s near-total abortion ban will remain in place while the justices review arguments by abortion clinics challenging two state laws.

The state’s highest court kept in place a recent lower court ruling that reimposed the ban on nearly all abortions in Kentucky.

Abortion-rights groups vowed to continue their legal fight, calling abortion a “critical individual freedom.”

“Make no mistake: abortion bans result in tragic health outcomes and are a form of control over our bodies,” a statement from Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the ACLU of Kentucky said on behalf of the two clinics. “Despite this setback, the fight continues. We will proceed with our case to restore and protect reproductive freedom in Kentucky.”

“Kentucky’s justices in Thursday’s ruling denied a request by the abortion clinics to reimpose an injunction that temporarily prevented the state’s near-total abortion ban from taking effect. In doing so, the Supreme Court ruled that the circumstances presented by the clinics and their attorneys in their motion do not rise to the level of extraordinary cause,” the Seattle Times reported.

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“The court agreed to take the case and set a schedule for the submission of briefs and for arguments before the justices. The high court set a hearing for Nov. 15. Which will be after the upcoming general election when a proposed constitutional amendment about abortion is on the ballot. Voters will be asked whether the state’s constitution should be amended to say there is no right to abortion,” the outlet added.

“Kentucky’s Republican-dominated legislature enacted a trigger law banning nearly all abortions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The only exception under the measure is when the health of the mother is threatened. Lawmakers also passed a separate 6-week ban that the clinics also challenged,” the outlet continued.

In late June, the Supreme Court released its decision in the highly-anticipated case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

The court voted in favor of overturning Roe v Wade, the landmark case that legalized abortion.

In early May, a draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito was leaked to Politico and it set off a firestorm.

“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” Alito wrote in the leaked draft.

“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” he wrote in the document. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives. We, therefore, hold the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion. Roe and Casey must be overruled, and the authority to regulate abortion must be returned to the people and their elected representatives.”

Shortly after the May 2nd leak, Chief Justice Roberts ordered the marshal of the court to probe the incident and find out who was responsible for it. At the time, Roberts said the intent of the leak was to “undermine the integrity of our operations.”

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“It will not succeed,” he pledged.

“This leak was intended to intimidate the justices and threaten the whole institution of the Court. Now the Court is facing an all-out assault from the left with an assassination attempt on a sitting justice and elected Democrats declaring an entire branch of government ‘illegitimate,’” Missouri GOP Sen. Josh Hawley said.

“Thankfully, the leak did not change the outcome of this monumental case, but we need to get to the bottom of what happened and ensure it never does again,” he added.

“I would hope that the Chief Justice is treating the investigation with great urgency given that the current clerks are nearly done with the term and he will soon lose whatever leverage he currently has,” Judicial Crisis Network President Carrie Severino said.

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She went on to suggest that “pressure to get to the bottom of the leak may wane” now that the court has issued its opinion on Dobbs.

“Unfortunately, a failure to identify and punish the culprit will only incentivize future leaks — serving to undermine the functioning of the Court and potentially endanger the justices,” she added.

Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz also offered his opinion of who he believes the “leaker” could be.

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