A key provision of Rick Perry’s abortion law in Texas got struck down by a federal judge on Tuesday. The law – which would have required a sonogram of the fetus to be done, then an explanation of the results to a woman seeking the abortion – will go into effect on Thursday.
According to U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks, the sonogram provision of the law could still proceed, but requiring the doctor to give a description of the sonogram “compels physicians to advance an ideological agenda with which they may not agree, regardless of any medical necessity and irrespective of whether the pregnant women wish to listen.”
Sparks wrote;
“(It) is difficult to avoid the troubling conclusion the Texas Legislature either wants to permanently brand women who choose to get abortions, or views these certifications as potential evidence to be used against physicians and women,”
Rick Perry, who made this issue a primary part of his 2011 platform, basically proved the Judge’s point that Republicans are expecting doctors to push their ideological agenda when he said in a statement, “every life lost to abortion is a tragedy and today’s ruling is a great disappointment to all Texans who stand in defense of life.”
The New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights sued to get this policy blocked, and expressed their approval with the ruling, calling it a “huge victory for women in Texas and a clear signal to the state Legislature that it went too far when it passed this law.”
Perry and his Republican legislatures already said they will appeal the ruling.
