A nonprofit publication of the Kentucky Center for Public Service Journalism

Jefferson Circuit Judge Mitch Perry extends injunction to allow abortion until lawsuit is decided in court


By Jack Brammer
NKyTribune reporter
 
Legalized abortion in Kentucky will continue for now.

Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Mitch Perry issued a temporary injunction Friday requested by abortion providers to allow abortions in Kentucky while their lawsuit against a controversial abortion trigger law is being decided in court.
       
The ruling was a legal victory for the state’s two abortion facilities, which remain in operation, and a defeat for Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Leaders from the American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Kentucky, representing EMW Women’s Surgical Center in Louisville, along with Planned Parenthood, said in a release, “Once again, the courts have rightly stopped Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s relentless efforts to ban abortion, which would have devastating consequences for Kentuckians.

“No one should be forced to carry a pregnancy against their will or flee the state to access essential health care. Kentuckians have a right to abortion under the state constitution, and we’ll continue fighting for that right so that every person in the commonwealth can get the care they need.”

Cameron said he will appeal the judge’s ruling.

“A Louisville judge’s decision today to continue halting Kentucky’s Human Life Protection Act and Heartbeat Law (known as the trigger law) is disappointing, and we will seek appellate relief,” said the state’s top law-enforcement official.

“The judge’s suggestion that Kentucky’s Constitution contains a right to abortion is not grounded in the text and history of our state’s governing document. We will continue our steadfast defense of these bipartisan laws that represent the Commonwealth’s commitment to the lives of the unborn.”

In his 20-page ruling on the injunction, Perry said, “The inquiry does not end simply because the word ‘abortion’ is not found in the Kentucky Constitution. The Court must protect more than just the words explicitly enumerated on the page in order for the purpose behind the words to have effect.

“To hold otherwise ignores the realities of how Constitutions, and law more generally, are written.”

The judge said the abortion providers “have sustained their burden of demonstrating substantial questions on the merits regarding the constitutionality of the challenged laws.
 
“The Court finds there is a substantial likelihood that these laws violate” rights to privacy and self-determination, equal protection and religious freedom as well as being vague.

Perry said the injunctive relief will “merely restore the status quo that has existed in Kentucky for nearly 50 years.”

Cameron and abortion facilities filed pleadings Monday with Judge Perry on how he should rule on the temporary injunction after a July 6 hearing.

Cameron asked the court to deny a request by the facilities to block the enforcement of the 2019 trigger law. It automatically eliminated access to most abortions in Kentucky following the June 24 U.S. Supreme Court decision to strike down Roe v. Wade, its 1973 decision that said abortion was a constitutional right.

Kentucky’s trigger law does allow a physician to perform the procedure if it is deemed necessary to prevent the death or permanent injury of the mother.

The American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Kentucky, representing EMW Women’s Surgical Center in Louisville, along with Planned Parenthood, filed suit against the state’s trigger law soon after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

In June, Judge Perry issued a temporary restraining order against the trigger law, allowing abortions to resume in Kentucky at EMW and Planned Parenthood. Cameron appealed to the Kentucky Court of Appeals and the Kentucky Supreme Court but lost.

The abortion providers claim that the laws violate a state constitutional right to abortion.

Cameron, a Republican who wants to unseat Democratic incumbent Andy Beshear in next year’s race for governor, said the trigger law reflects “Kentucky’s commitment to protecting unborn life, a commitment that I share and will continue to advocate for by defending these important laws.”

Kentucky voters will decide Nov. 8 at the polls whether to approve an amendment to the Kentucky Constitution saying there is no right to an abortion in the state and no government funding could be used for the procedure. That would prevail over any current state laws.


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One Comment

  1. Karen Nunn says:

    Judge Perry, thank you for blocking the laws that limited abortions. Please continue to fight for women’s rights. We need more honorable people like you.

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