(LifeSiteNews) – A Wyoming district court judge ruled last week that a lawsuit brought by the state’s lone “surgical” abortion facility challenging two recently passed pro-life laws in the state, including one that has increased regulations on the facility, cannot move forward.
The lawsuit, brought by the Wellspring Health Access abortuary and other abortionists, challenged the recently passed HB42 that requires abortion facilities to obtain an ambulatory surgical license to continue killing unborn children, as well as legislation that requires women to have an ultrasound before they can be given abortion pills. Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens ruled on March 21 that because Wellspring is located in Natrona County, not Teton County, the case could not proceed.
In the ruling, Owens stressed that while the case is dismissed, the plaintiffs are “free to refile wherever they so choose under Wyoming law.”
Wellspring, the only abortion facility in the state that both commits “surgical” abortions and hands out chemical abortion drugs, has been forced to stop their “surgical” abortions since Gov. Mark Gordon signed HB42 into law in February as they have been unable to meet the new regulations.
The lawsuit also challenged the law requiring women to undergo an ultrasound before they can chemically abort their children. Earlier this month, the state legislature overrode Gordon’s veto to pass this law.
The law “creates the prospect of an unnecessary, intimate, and invasive procedure (transvaginal ultrasound) which subjects women to an uncomfortable and potentially traumatic experience in what may already be a very overwhelming situation,” the Republican governor claimed, neglecting the grave harm that abortion poses to unborn babies.
“I question whether this invasive ultrasound is absolutely necessary, fully informative, or can even be considered a reasonable requirement for this procedure regardless of the circumstances resulting in the pregnancy,” he said.
While the civil suit was initially brought in Natrona County, the plaintiffs had moved the case to Teton County, arguing that the Natrona County Court wasn’t moving quickly enough, according to Wyoming Public Radio. The state of Wyoming responded by filing a motion to move the case back to the Natrona County District Court, arguing that the plaintiffs were “judge shopping” by having the case moved.
Judge Owens has previously ruled in favor of pro-abortion advocates, most notably last year when she blocked Wyoming’s near-total abortion ban. That case is currently being appealed to the Wyoming Supreme Court.
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