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Judge Melissa Owens of the District Court of Teton County said
the lawsuit raised important questions about the ban, which has
only narrow exceptions for rape, incest and medical emergencies,
under Wyoming's constitution.
Owen said irreparable harm could occur if the ban were enforced
before those questions are answered. She also said she believes
the plaintiffs would win on the merits of their case, though a
final decision will likely come from the state's Supreme Court,
whose five members were all appointed by Republican governors.
"The legislature cannot pass a discriminatory law on the basis
of sex that restricts the constitutionally protected right to
make one's own health care decisions," Owens wrote.
"Today's ruling is an important victory for abortion access in
Wyoming and in support of Wyomingites' constitutionally
protected right to make decisions about their own health care,
which includes abortion care," said Julie Burkhart, founder of
the non-profit Wellspring Health Access, which plans to open an
abortion clinic in Casper, Wyoming.
Wellspring sued to challenge the law, alongside another women's
health non-profit, two doctors, a pregnant nurse and a female
law student. They argued that Wyoming's constitution includes a
right to make private medical decisions.
The office of Wyoming Attorney General Bridget Hill did not
immediately respond to a request for comment.
Wyoming is one of about two dozen states that have moved to
restrict abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court in June
overturned its landmark 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade, which had
established a nationwide right to abortion. New abortion
restrictions have drawn a flurry of legal challenges, though
most have been allowed to take effect.
(Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York, Editing by Alexia
Garamfalvi and Aurora Ellis)
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