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The Monroe Circuit Court denied a motion Wednesday morning for a permanent injunction against Indiana’s near-total ban on abortion.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana initially filed the lawsuit challenging Senate Enrolled Act 1 in September 2022 shortly after the law was passed.
SEA1 prohibits abortion in Indiana except in limited cases of rape or incest, fatal fetal anomaly, or to protect the life or health of the pregnant woman. The law also eliminates licensed abortion clinics in the state and instead requires legal abortion procedures to be carried out in a hospital or ambulatory outpatient surgical care.
A violation of SEA1 is a Level 5 felony punishable by up to six years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000 and revocation of a doctor’s medical license.
The ACLU of Indiana targeted the portions of the law that are related to the life-or-health exception and elimination of abortion clinics, claiming they violated Article 1, Section 1 of the Indiana Constitution.
Special Judge Kelsey B. Hanlon wrote in the order that the plaintiffs hadn’t shown the statute “materially burdens the rights of any specific patient or well-defined class of patients to access constitutionally protected abortion care.” She did acknowledge there was “significant and compelling” evidence on the policy implications of the statute and its effects on medical professionals.
“However, the Court cannot substitute its own policy preferences for that of the Indiana General Assembly and the Court limits its examination to the General Assembly’s constitutional authority post-Planned Parenthood,” Hanlon wrote.
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita applauded the ruling.
“Another huge win for life! Today, the Monroe County Circuit Court denied Planned Parenthood’s motion for a permanent injunction against our pro-life law,” Rokita posted on X.
Rokita’s Democrat challenger Destiny Wells said she is refraining from comment at this time due to the likelihood of continued litigation on the matter.
“I think we all agree that (The Office of the Attorney General) needs to return to the technocratic institution it once was, and this is a good place to start,” Wells wrote in an email to Indiana Lawyer.
The ACLU of Indiana released a joint statement with Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawai’i, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky, all-options, and the Lawyering Project.
“Today’s decision means that pregnant Hoosiers’ lives will continue to be endangered by Indiana’s abortion ban. Already, Hoosiers with serious health complications have been forced to endure unjustifiable suffering due to miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies, and other pregnancy-related issues or leave the state to access appropriate care. Hoosiers deserve better, and the Indiana Constitution demands better. We will continue to serve patients as best as possible and work towards a future where patients and their doctors can make decisions without politicians in their exam rooms,” the statement said.
The case is Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawai’i, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky, INC., et al. v. Members of the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana, et al., 53C06-2208-PL-001756.
This story has been updated.
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