The Justice Department sued Texas on Thursday over a new state law that prohibits most Abortion, Arguing that it was formulated with “blatant contempt for the Constitution.”
The lawsuit was filed in a federal court in Texas, requiring a federal judge to declare the law invalid, “prohibit its enforcement, and protect the rights infringed by the state of Texas.”
“According to the Supreme Court’s long-standing jurisprudence, the bill is clearly unconstitutional,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a press conference announcing the lawsuit.
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The Ministry of Justice argued that the law illegally violated women’s constitutional rights and violated the constitution’s supreme clause, which required federal laws to replace state laws. He said federal officials are also worried that other states may enact similar laws to “deprive their citizens of their constitutional rights.”
The lawsuit reads: “The constitution stipulates that’the state shall not prohibit any woman from making a final decision to terminate a pregnancy before fertility.” “But Texas has already done this.”
The Texas SB8 law prohibits abortion after a medical professional detects cardiac activity—usually about six weeks before some women know they are pregnant. The courts have prevented other states from imposing similar restrictions, but the Texas law is very different because it is enforced through civil litigation rather than criminal prosecutors.
The Justice Department is under increasing pressure, not only from the White House—US President Joe Biden once stated that the law “nearly meets American standards”—but also from Congressional Democrats who want Garland. Take action. Earlier this week, Garland vowed that the Justice Department would intervene in the enforcement of a federal law called the “Freedom of Access to Clinics Act.”
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This law, commonly referred to as the FACE Act, generally prohibits access to abortion clinics by blocking entrances or threatening to use force to intimidate or interfere with someone. It also prohibits the destruction of the property of abortion clinics and other reproductive health centers.
The lawsuit filed on Thursday seeks an immediate injunction to prohibit enforcement of the law in Texas. Under the statute, someone can file a lawsuit—even if they have nothing to do with the aborted woman—and if they win the case in court, they may be entitled to at least $10,000 in damages.
Garland said: “The law authorizes all private citizens to act as bounty hunters, authorizing each claim to recover at least $10,000 from individuals who promote women’s constitutional rights.” “This statutory plan clearly and clearly recognizes the intention to pass obstruction of judicial review. To prevent women from exercising their constitutional rights.”
The attorney general also argued that Texas law may make some federal employees of different government agencies civil liability for their work.
Since the Supreme Court confirmed that women have the constitutional right to abortion in the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973, Texas law is the largest restriction on abortion in the United States.
Abortion providers say they will comply, but some of the approximately two dozen abortion clinics in Texas have temporarily stopped providing abortion services altogether. At the same time, clinics in neighboring states saw a surge in patients from Texas.
Texas’s largest anti-abortion organization and promoter of the new law, Texas Right to Life, said on Thursday that it is already working with other states to pass similar measures.
The organization said in a statement: “The tricks of the Biden administration represent a desperate attempt to stop the life-saving law by any means necessary.”
Renae Eze, a spokesperson for Texas Governor Greg Abbott, said his office believes the court will uphold the law.
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“The most precious freedom is life itself. Texas passed a law to ensure that the life of every child with a heartbeat is not harmed by abortion,” Eze said.
The law does not provide for any exceptions in rape or incest cases, and Abbott defended on Tuesday by falsely claiming that women still have “at least six weeks” time to have an abortion. A woman who has regular menstruation and carefully follows her cycle can know a positive result about 4 weeks after pregnancy.
Abbott also stated that Texas will work to “eliminate all rapists on the streets.” A recent investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice found that most rape cases were not reported to the police. One of the 2019 investigations found that only about one-third of victims reported that they had been raped or sexually assaulted.
The Center for Reproductive Rights, which filed a lawsuit on behalf of an abortion clinic in Texas, welcomed the intervention of the Biden administration.
Nancy Northup, president of the organization, said: “The Department of Justice has joined the legal battle to restore constitutionally protected abortion access in Texas and to disarm volunteer police officers who wish to receive bounties. This changes the rules of the game.”
© 2021 Canadian Press
