Abortion Clinic Owners Challenge Location, Procedure Bans
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley last month signed into law a ban on abortion clinics within 2,000 feet of public K-8 schools. He also approved a ban of a second-trimester abortion procedure known as dilation & evacuation. Elsewhere, abortion advocates and opponents debated in front of the Louisiana governor's mansion and a clinic in Virginia remains under suspension.
The Associated Press:
Complaint Challenges Ban On Abortion Clinics Near Schools
Abortion clinic owners on Thursday filed a challenge to two new Alabama abortion restrictions, one banning clinics near schools and another banning a common second-trimester abortion procedure. The complaint filed by American Civil Liberties Union in Montgomery federal court said the school location restriction would close two abortion clinics that perform more than half of the abortions in the state, and the procedure ban would severely curtail second-trimester abortion access throughout Alabama. (6/2)
New Orleans Times-Picayune:
Abortion Bills Prompt Debate Over Lawsuits, Constitution
Opponents and supporters of abortion rights engaged in heated debate Thursday (June 2) that stretched from the Capitol to the Governor's Mansion over the constitutionality of abortion regulations offered in the legislative session. Supporters of Planned Parenthood and abortion rights warned in a demonstration in front of the governor's residence that Louisiana will be on the hook for millions of dollars in legal fees defending bills passed by legislators. (Litten, 6/2)
The Richmond Times-Dispatch:
NOVA Abortion Clinic Remains Suspended; Blacksburg Clinic Has Closed
A Northern Virginia clinic whose license to perform abortions was suspended in April after a Department of Health inspection that found more than two dozen deficiencies has not sought reinstatement and remains under suspension, officials said Thursday. (Nolan, 6/2)