LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — A pregnant woman filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking the right to an abortion in Kentucky in the latest challenge to the state's near-total ban on the procedure.
The suit, filed in state court in Louisville, claims that Kentucky laws blocking abortions violate the plaintiff’s rights to privacy and self-determination under the state constitution.
The woman, a state resident identified by the pseudonym Mary Poe to protect her privacy, is about seven weeks pregnant, the suit said. She wants to terminate her pregnancy but cannot legally do so, it said.
A statement from Poe was released by the ACLU of Kentucky:
"I am about seven weeks pregnant, and I have decided that ending my pregnancy is the best decision for me and my family. I feel overwhelmed and frustrated that I cannot access abortion care here in my own state, and I have started the difficult process of arranging to get care in another state where it’s legal. This involves trying to take time off work and securing child care, all of which place an enormous burden on me. This is my personal decision, a decision I believe should be mine alone, not one made by anyone else. I am bringing this case to ensure that other Kentuckians will not have to go through what I am going through, and instead will be able to get the health care they need in our community."
“Without the ability to decide whether to continue a pregnancy, Kentuckians have lost the right to make critical decisions about their health, bodies, lives and futures,” the suit said.
It is seeking class-action status to include others who are or will become pregnant and want the right to have an abortion.
The suit is challenging Kentucky’s near-total trigger law ban and a separate six-week ban, both of which were passed by Republican legislative majorities.
The trigger law took effect when Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 and bans abortions except to save the life of the patient or to prevent disabling injury. It does not include exceptions for cases of rape or incest.
The lawsuit is similar to legal action taken nearly a year ago, also by a pregnant woman who sought the right to an abortion. That challenge was dropped after the woman learned her embryo no longer had cardiac activity, but abortion rights groups said the legal fight was far from over.
Defendants in the latest suit include Russell Coleman, Kentucky's Republican attorney general. His office did not immediately comment.
Kentucky's Supreme Court refused last year to halt the near-total ban, resulting in abortion access remaining virtually shut off in Kentucky. Abortion rights groups have searched for a plaintiff to challenge the ban.
Related stories:
- Namesake for failed 'Hadley's Law' in Kentucky vows to keep fighting for abortion exceptions
- Kentucky lawmaker makes last minute push to advance exceptions for state abortion law
Copyright 2024 WDRB Media. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All Rights Reserved.
