Woman who shared her abortion story discusses Proposition 139
Ashley Ortiz, an abortion rights supporter, talks about sharing her story to promote Arizona’s Amendment 139 on election night, Nov. 5, 2024.
Three abortion providers have filed a lawsuit to nullify a state law that prohibits most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, arguing it is invalid under a constitutional amendment Arizona voters approved last month.
The lawsuit filed Tuesday requests a judge declare the 15-week law enacted in 2022 unconstitutional and prevent it from being enforced. The lawsuit says the law clearly “denies, restricts or interferes” with the fundamental right to an abortion Arizonans created in passing Proposition 139.
Over 60% of voters supported the proposition, the Arizona Abortion Access Act, which prevents restrictions on abortions that occur before fetal viability. Viability is determined by a doctor but is generally considered around 23 or 24 weeks of pregnancy. The law allows abortions after viability only in cases when a person’s life, physical or mental health is threatened.
But the lawsuit says also having the 15-week law on the books forces doctors to “stop providing the critical care their patients seek in accordance with their best medical judgment under threat of criminal prosecution, severe civil sanctions, and revocation of their medical licenses.”
Meanwhile, Arizonans “continue to suffer the irreparable deprivation of their fundamental rights and serious, irreparable harm to their physical, psychological, and dignitary well-being,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit was filed in Maricopa County Superior Court by attorneys at the American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Reproductive Freedom, Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Phoenix firm Perkins Coie LLP.
The lawsuit was the “first step to make sure the promise of the amendment is a reality on the ground,” Rebecca Chan, staff attorney on the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Project, said in an interview.
The plaintiffs are obstetrician-gynecologists Dr. Eric Reuss of Scottsdale and Dr. Paul Isaacson of Phoenix and Planned Parenthood Arizona.
Abortion rights advocates, including the attorney for the Proposition 139 campaign, had previously said a lawsuit would be needed to challenge the 15-week law and make clear it is no longer enforceable. Isaacson said last month that other cases could soon follow that challenge other restrictive abortion laws, like those that create a 24-hour waiting period.
In the interim, at least some abortion providers in the state said they would begin providing services up to fetal viability as allowed by Proposition 139.
Dr. Jill Gibson, chief medical officer at Planned Parenthood Arizona, said in a statement that Planned Parenthood “is in the process of instituting changes so we can begin providing abortion beyond 15 weeks. We look forward to expanding abortion care, and we will not stop fighting for our patients, our health care staff, and to implement the will of Arizona voters.”
Reuss said in a statement that it was “a great day for my patients.”
“Today we can once again provide care to people who want to end their pregnancy,” he said. “We hope the courts will quickly recognize the harms of Arizona’s ban and strike it down once and for all.”
It is unclear if anyone will oppose the lawsuit.
The state’s lawyer, Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes, has said her office will not defend the 15-week prohibition. Chan said that Mayes agreed, in a court filing submitted in tandem with the lawsuit, that she would not enforce that law.
Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen, a Gilbert Republican who voted in favor of the 15-week law, said the Senate GOP was considering options, including whether to defend that law.
“We will pursue every legal option available to protect the sanctity of life and the health of the mother and baby,” he said in a text message.
The anti-abortion Center for Arizona Policy said in a statement it was analyzing whether it would try to intervene in the lawsuit. “Our commitment remains what it had always been: protect both the woman and her unborn child,” center President Cathi Herrod said in a statement.
The 15-week law dates to 2022 and was enacted three months before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned precedent in Roe v. Wade. That legal case and others prevented states from restricting abortion before fetal viability.
Republicans in the Arizona Legislature passed the bill banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy except in cases of medical emergencies, and then-Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, signed it into law.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade sent political shockwaves across the country, with many conservative states completely banning or limiting access. This year, 10 states put ballot measures before voters to protect abortion access, and most passed.
Arizona’s measure was buoyed in part by a blockbuster April ruling by the state Supreme Court. That 4-2 decision sought to sort out conflicting laws, determining a near-total ban on abortion that dates back 160 years could be enforced over the 15-week law.
Ultimately, a handful of GOP lawmakers joined Democrats and Gov. Katie Hobbs to repeal that ban, leaving the 15-week law in effect. That law prevailed until Arizona voters passed Proposition 139, which went into effect after the statewide canvass on Nov. 25.
Chan and the ACLU previously brought a case in Arizona when there were conflicting abortion laws on the books. They sought clarity and certainty for providers who were jostled by back-and-forth court rulings. Chan said that certainty might come soon, two years later, with the filing of the new case.
“The amendment is crystal clear: there is a fundamental right to abortion in Arizona. … It’s really exciting to get to play a part in making sure that we take down these structures that are cruel, they are unjust, and as of very recently, they are unconstitutional,” Chan said.
Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at [email protected] or 480-416-5669.
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Publish date : 2024-12-03 05:51:00
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