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In April, Arizona legislators from Abortion Access, a ballot initiative to enshrine the right to abortion in the Arizona Constitution, held a press conference while the Arizona House of Representatives was in recess and spoke with Arizona House Republicans about the 1864 Abortion Act. A protest was held to denounce the ban. 17, 2024, Phoenix, Arizona.
CNN
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The Arizona Supreme Court has delayed enforcement of the state’s recently reinstated 1864 abortion ban, according to an order filed Monday. The order grants a 90-day stay requested by the state attorney general.
Arizona Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs signed the repeal of the 1864 abortion ban on May 2, but the repeal will not take effect until 90 days after the Legislature adjourns, CNN first reported. The state’s Legislature is currently in session, and a Civil War-era abortion ban could be in effect for a short period of time.
The stay will remain in effect until Aug. 12, and Arizona Attorney General Chris Mays may consider a petition for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to the order. Depending on the order, it may reapply for another injunction.
Mays said in a statement that he was “grateful” the court had halted enforcement and said the earliest the 1864 abortion ban would go into effect is Sept. 26. As another case provides for an additional 45 days.
“I will do everything in my power to ensure that our doctors provide health care to our patients according to their best judgment, not the beliefs of the men who were elected to the territorial legislature 160 years ago,” she said. .
The court on Monday also rejected a petition from the Arizona Planned Families Act, which asked the court to keep the 1864 anti-abortion law in place until the law is repealed.
The repeal of the Civil War-era ban earlier this month comes after years of efforts to overturn an 1864 law that bans abortion at any stage of pregnancy except to save the mother’s life. It was a victory for abortion rights advocates who had been threatening them. 2 to 5 years in prison.
CNN’s Rashard Rose and Clay Voytek contributed to this report.
