Small Court Victories Change Nothing for Women Seeking Abortions in Texas
The New York Times
A Texas statute that bans abortion after six weeks of pregnancy was seemingly undercut by two court rulings, but the reality on the ground has not changed.
HOUSTON — Within the span of a few hours, a Texas judge and the U.S. Supreme Court appeared to undercut Texas’ six-week abortion ban, ruling in separate opinions late Thursday and early Friday that aspects of the law were unconstitutional under state law and that federal challenges could go forward.
But the victories for abortion rights supporters were largely hollow, and providers in Texas were not cheering on Friday.
Neither decision altered the reality on the ground in the state. Both left in place the new abortion law, the most restrictive in the country, which effectively bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, with no exceptions for rape or incest.