WORTH A SHOT

Justice Department Will Ask SCOTUS to Block Texas’ Abortion Ban

After an appeals court ruled that the law can remain in place as it makes its way through the justice system.

The Department of Justice plans to ask the Supreme Court to step in and block the near-total abortion ban in Texas as the controversial law makes its way through the justice system, CNN reported Friday. The request, which has not been formally presented yet, comes a day after an appeals court ruled that the law can remain in place, rejecting a DOJ request to reverse the ruling. It wouldn’t be the first time the Supreme Court has weighed in on the law. Last month, in a separate legal challenge, the high court elected in a 5-4 decision not to block the restrictive law, with Chief Justice John Roberts siding with the liberal justices. In a dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor blasted the court’s ruling as “stunning” and said that justices who chose not to protect a woman’s right to an abortion have “opted to bury their heads in the sand.”

The law, which went into effect early last month, bans a woman from getting an abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, with no exceptions for rape or incest. It also grants citizens the ability to enforce the law, allowing them to sue those who either provide an abortion or help a woman obtain one.