The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana is challenging Indiana’s national controversial abortion ban after the organization filed a lawsuit in Monroe County against the Indiana Medical Licensing Board.
On Aug. 5, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed Senate Bill 1 into law. SB 1 makes abortion illegal except when a pregnancy poses a serious health risk to the mother, the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest or if the fetus is diagnosed with a lethal abnormality.
The bill “terminates the licensure of abortion clinics.” This would require those seeking abortions to have the procedure done at a hospital.
[Related: Indiana House of Representatives passes abortion ban]
Indiana’s abortion ban was the first since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June.
“Today, we are asking that the court does what Indiana lawmakers didn’t — protect Hoosiers’ constitutional rights,” Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement.
The lawsuit asks for the court to stop the ban from going into effect Sept. 15. It also asks for a judicial order to be issued declaring the ban unconstitutional.
[Related: Abortion ban passed by Senate, signed by governor]
The Indiana Constitution secures a women’s right to privacy, which includes the right for them to make their own reproductive health decisions, Legal Director of ACLU Indiana Ken Falk said in a statement on the ACLU’s website.
The ACLU filed the suit in Monroe County because a Planned Parenthood is located in Bloomington, Falk said.
No hearing date has been set for the lawsuit.
