Oklahoma judge blocks enforcement of abortion law
By The Associated Press
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Published: October 21, 2009
OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma County judge has issued a temporary restraining order blocking enforcement of a new law requiring doctors who perform abortions to report information on women seeking the procedure.
The order issued Monday by
District Judge Twyla Mason Gray stops House Bill 1595 from going into effect Nov. 1 until a motion for a temporary injunction is decided. A hearing on the injunction is scheduled for Dec. 4.
Lora Joyce Davis and
Wanda Stapleton filed a lawsuit Sept. 29, alleging the bill violates a constitutional requirement that legislative measures deal only with one subject.
Besides new reporting requirements, the measure also bars abortions based on the gender of the fetus, redefines several abortion-related terms and creates new reporting responsibilities for several state agencies.
Stapleton, a former state legislator, said she is delighted the restraining order was granted and hopes the measure ultimately will be found to be unconstitutional.
“The bill places obstacles in the path of women and is intended to discourage and scare them to death,” Stapleton said Wednesday. “It points a public finger at women by forcing them to answer 37 intensely personal questions.”
The Attorney General's office opposed the restraining order request in its own motion, saying the plaintiffs hadn't shown they would be harmed irreparably if the law took effect one month before the hearing.
“We have filed a motion to dissolve that restraining order,”
Charlie Price, a spokesman for the attorney general's office, said. “The judge has indicated she will rule on our request by the 30th.”
Attorney General Drew Edmondson and
Oklahoma Commissioner of Health Terry Cline are among the defendants named in the lawsuit. The attorney general's office deals with challenges to state law.
Rep. Dan Sullivan, R-Tulsa, the author of the House bill, could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
Tony Lauinger, state Chairman of Oklahomans for Life, said he believes the law is constitutional and is optimistic that it will be upheld.
“It's a law that will help the women of Oklahoma and it will serve important public health needs,” Lauinger said. “We look forward to it being enforced as soon as possible.”
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