The legal landscape in Kentucky may change significantly as a woman takes on the state’s stringent abortion laws in a potentially precedent-setting case.
At a Glance
- A Kentucky woman, Mary Poe, is challenging the state’s abortion restrictions in court.
- Poe argues that these laws violate her constitutional rights to privacy.
- The lawsuit aims to overturn the trigger law and six-week abortion ban.
- This case could influence how state-level reproductive laws are framed.
The Legal Challenge Facing Kentucky
Mary Poe, a pregnant woman in Kentucky, filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s near-total abortion ban using a pseudonym to protect her identity. The lawsuit targets Kentucky’s trigger law and six-week ban as unconstitutional due to infringement on privacy and self-determination rights. Poe is currently seven weeks pregnant and unable to proceed with an abortion in Kentucky, having to face the significant burden of traveling out of state to receive care, which she describes as an “enormous burden.”
This lawsuit is supported by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), among others, aiming to gather more plaintiffs with similar grievances.
With the trigger law implemented following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Kentucky permits abortions only in cases where it’s necessary to save the mother’s life or prevent disabling injury.
BREAKING: We’re challenging Kentucky’s abortion bans on behalf of a pregnant woman seeking abortion care.
The bans violate our client’s right to self-determination and privacy, as guaranteed in the Kentucky Constitution.
— ACLU (@ACLU) November 12, 2024
The Political Landscape
Kentucky’s Republican Attorney General, Russell Coleman, is named as a defendant in the lawsuit. Coleman has expressed commitment to defending the state’s laws, stating, “It’s the attorney general’s responsibility to defend the laws passed by the General Assembly, and we will zealously work to uphold these laws in court.” Despite previous rejection of similar cases due to standing issues, Poe’s lawsuit aims to achieve class-action status to challenge these laws comprehensively.
In 2022, Kentucky voters didn’t support a measure that would exclude constitutional protections for abortion, but no legislative changes followed. Yet Kentucky’s Supreme Court upheld the ban, maintaining limited access to abortion.
Pregnant woman sues Kentucky over state's near-total abortion ban https://t.co/dJLCZQzrF6
— Just the News (@JustTheNews) November 13, 2024
Potential Impact and Future Developments
Poe’s case is the fourth challenge against Kentucky’s stringent abortion laws since Roe v. Wade’s reversal and may turn into a landmark battle influencing reproductive rights at the state level. Attorney General Coleman suggested amending laws to include exceptions for rape and incest, but such changes remain speculative. The state’s upcoming Supreme Court composition changes to a female majority in January, potentially affecting future rulings.
This legal battle underscores the ongoing national debate over reproductive rights, potentially setting a precedent for addressing abortion laws at state levels, with implications for women’s health and autonomy in Kentucky and beyond.
Sources:
- https://justthenews.com/government/courts-law/pregnant-woman-sues-kentucky-over-states-near-total-abortion-ban
- https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/pregnant-woman-sues-abortion-challenge-kentuckys-total-ban-115788977
- https://kentuckylantern.com/2024/11/12/overwhelmed-and-frustrated-louisville-woman-sues-to-overturn-kentuckys-abortion-ban/
