Just two days after a judge granted the Justice Department’s request to stop Texas from enforcing a strict new abortion law, a federal appeals court on Oct. 8 reinstated the law that essentially bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.
An order by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the law, known as Senate Bill 8, which bans abortions once a heartbeat is detected, usually around six weeks into pregnancy. The law took effect Sept. 1.
“Great news tonight,” Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton tweeted. “I will fight federal overreach at every turn.”
The bill’s language makes it difficult to challenge in court, legal observers say, because it allows private citizens to sue abortion providers and collect damages if successful. The Supreme Court allowed the law to move forward in September without ruling on its constitutionality.
Some Texas abortion clinics had begun serving patients again following the Oct. 6 ruling by Federal District Court Judge Robert L. Pittman that halted enforcement of the law.
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