THE LATEST:
COLOMBIA, S.C.– According to a press relief, as of March 15th, 21 states are on board with South Carolina’s Fetal Heartbeat and Protection Act.
An amicus brief was filed directly in support of the state’s March 8th petition.
The brief was led by Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall and accompanied by the following states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.
ORIGINAL SROTY:
RICHMOND V.A. (AP) – South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has requested the entire Fourth Circuit Court Of Appeals to review the state’s Fetal Heartbeat and Protection Act.
McMaster says the Heartbeat Protection Act was set in place “to protect unborn life and to promote maternal health.” It requires doctors to check for a fetal heartbeat before performing an abortion. The Act warns that any physician who performs an abortion without checking for a heartbeat or aborts a child with a detected heartbeat would be subject to criminal penalties.
McMaster signed this Act into law in February 2021, but it was immediately challenged in a lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood.
In its ruling Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the Richmond-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Mary Lewis, who suspended the law on its second day in effect.
The appeals court rejected the State’s argument that it was improper to stall all parts of the law rather than just the “heartbeat” provision. The court also dismissed the State’s contention that Planned Parenthood did not have legal standing to bring the challenge on behalf of women who would potentially be prevented from getting abortions.
McMaster made a statement in regards to his request.
“We’ve said we will take this case all the way to the United States Supreme Court, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do if we have to,” said Gov. Henry McMaster. “There is no right more precious and more fragile than the right to life, and we will do everything in our power to protect it.”
