A judge in West Virginia's capital has blocked enforcement of the state's 150-year-old abortion ban, opening the door for abortions to resume in the state.
ban Monday, opening the door for abortions to resume in the state, at least for now. Kanawha County Circuit Court Judge Tera L. Salango granted the Women's Health Center of West Virginia a preliminary injunction against the 1800s-era ban, saying that in the absence of action by the court, the state's sole abortion clinic and its patients,"especially those who are impregnated as a result of a rape or incest, are suffering irreparable harm.
Lawyers for the Women's Health Center — the state's only abortion clinic — argued that the old law is void because it has not been enforced in more than 50 years and has been superseded by a slew of modern laws regulating abortion that acknowledge a woman's right to the procedure. One example is West Virginia's 2015 law, which allows abortions until 20 weeks.
Judge Tera L. Salango presides from the bench in Kanawha County Circuit Court in Charleston, W.Va., on July 18, 2022.The Women's Health Center of West Virginia had suspended abortion services June 24, the day the U.S. Supreme Court. Staffers canceled dozens of abortion appointments, fearing they or their patients could be prosecuted under the old statute.
The laws passed in years since do not conflict with the old law, the attorney general's office said, but rather were intended to"fill the void regarding unregulated post-Roe abortion," and if lawmakers wanted to repeal the 1800s-era law, they would have done so. Salango said if lawmakers wanted to ensure that abortion would be criminalized in West Virginia if Roe fell, they should have taken more concrete action to do so.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
West Virginia judge blocks state's ability to enforce 150-year-old abortion banWest Virginia has a state law on the books dating back to the 1800s making performing or obtaining an abortion a felony, punishable by up to a decade in prison. It provides an exception for cases in which a pregnant person’s life is at risk.
Read more »
VIDEO: Chicken takes ride on boogie board over West Virginia floodwatersA chicken was caught on camera taking a brief journey on a boogie board after residential areas of Tornado, West Virginia, were flooded after a storm.
Read more »
West Virginia Woman Wakes from 2-Year Coma, Names Own Brother as Attempted Murder SuspectPolice say the woman was 'attacked, hacked, and left for dead' (via toofab)
Read more »
After two years in a coma, West Virginia woman wakes to name brother in attackA West Virginia woman awoke from a years-long coma after being brutally attacked and identified her brother as the assailant, according to local reports.
Read more »
A West Virginia woman woke up from two-year coma -- and identified her brother as attacker who nearly killed her, police sayA West Virginia woman has awoken from a two-year coma and identified her brother as her attacker, according to police.
Read more »
A West Virginia woman woke up from a 2-year coma — and identified her brother as the attackerPolice said that Wanda Palmer was 'attacked, hacked, and left for dead.'
Read more »