Judge sets hearing in abortion law challenge
A federal judge will hear arguments next month on whether he should order a temporary halt to a new Kentucky law requiring doctors who perform abortions to first conduct an ultrasound exam and attempt to show and describe the image of the fetus to patients.
The law, passed by the Kentucky General Assembly this month as an emergency measure, took effect immediately after Gov. Matt Bevin signed it into law Jan. 9.
It was immediately challenged as unconstitutional by the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, on behalf of the state's only abortion provider, EMW Women's Surgical Center, in Louisville. The ACLU is asking U.S. District Judge David Hale for a temporary restraining order to block enforcement of the law while the case is decided.
Hale on Tuesday entered an order saying he will hold a hearing on the case Feb. 16.
The ultrasound law is one of two abortion bills lawmakers fast-tracked through the first week of the 2017 legislative session after Republicans, who already controlled the state Senate, also won control of the House in the November election.
The other bans abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy; the ACLU has said it is studying that measure.
Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear is defending the state against the challenge to the ultrasound law, though he has expressed doubts about its constitutionality, saying the court case comes with "risks and potential costs."
But he said he won't attempt to defend the law banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, calling it "clearly unconstitutional."
That sparked criticism from Senate President Robert Stivers, House Speaker Jeff Hoover and Bevin, all Republicans, who said Beshear, a Democrat, should do his job. Stivers said Beshear, as attorney general, shouldn't "pick and choose" which laws to defend.
Meanwhile, Stivers and Hoover are seeking to join in the defense of the ultrasound law in the pending federal case, arguing Beshear appears unwilling to vigorously defend it.
The two legislative leaders have filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the ultrasound law, saying Beshear "expressed reluctance" about the ultrasound law and has refused to defend the law banning abortions after 20 weeks.
The ACLU lawsuit alleges the ultrasound law violates free speech rights by dictating what the physician must tell the patient about the fetus in an attempt to show it to her — even if the patient refuses to view the ultrasound image and doesn't want to hear the message. Such requirement could be especially traumatic for women pregnant because of rape or incest or carrying a fetus with a severe abnormality, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit said women seeking abortions in Kentucky already are fully informed under a state law that requires counseling about the procedure 24 hours in advance from a health professional, either in person or by video link.
But in their filing, Stivers and Hoover said the state has the authority to ensure the pregnant woman is fully informed about the procedure.
"It is well within the right of the Kentucky General Assembly to enact, and the governor to sign, laws designed to promote fully informed decisions by mothers regarding the development of their unborn children and their decisions to undergo an abortion," it said.
Contact reporter Deborah Yetter at 502-582-4228 or at dyetter@courier-journal.com.
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