Judge considering temporary block of new abortion law

WITH BREAKING NEWS. IOWA’S NEWEST ABORTION RESTRICTION IS NOW LAW. GOVERNOR REYNOLDS SIGNED THE SO-CALLED FETAL HEARTBEAT BILL IN FRONT OF AN ECSTATIC CROWD IN DES MOINES AT NEARLY THE SAME MOMENT, A POLK COUNTY JUDGE DASHED THE HOPES OF ABORTION RIGHTS ADVOCATES. THEY HAD ARGUED THE LAW SHOULD NOT BE ENFORCED. THE NEW LAW BANS ABORTIONS ONCE FETAL CARDIAC ACTIVITY IS DETECTED. DOCTORS SAY THAT BEGINS AROUND SIX WEEKS OF PREGNANCY. THE LAW TAKES EFFECT IMMEDIATELY. TODAY WAS A VICTORY. YEARS IN THE MAKING FOR CONSERVATIVES, BUT THE SIGNING KICKS OFF WHAT COULD BE A LENGTHY COURT BATTLE. OUR TEAM COVERAGE STARTS WITH KCCI BEAU BOWMAN BO. WELL, STACY, AT THE HEARING TODAY IN POLK COUNTY DISTRICT COURT, THE JUDGE SAID THAT THAT HE WOULD NOT ISSUE AN INJUNCTION ON JUST YET. LAWYERS HAD TO ARGUE ON THE LAWSUITS, ODDS FOR THE LAWSUIT’S SUCCESS IN THE HIGHER COURTS IF THEY IF IT WAS TO GET THERE. AN ATTORNEY FOR PLANNED PARENTHOOD ARGUED THAT UNDER THIS LAW, A VAST MAJORITY OF ABORTIONS IN THE STATE WOULD BE BANNED, THUS CREATING AN UNDUE BURDEN, THE STANDARD ON WHICH THE IOWA SUPREME COURT HAS PREVIOUSLY RULED ON THE STATE’S ATTORNEY ARGUED THE COURT DOESN’T HAVE TO LEAN ON THAT THAT STANDARD. AND SINCE THE IOWA CONSTITUTION NO LONGER GUARANTEES THE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO AN ABORTION, THE COURTS CAN APPLY A DIFFERENT STANDARD. ESTABLISHING A REASONABLE CONNECTION TO A LEGITIMATE INTEREST OF THE GOVERNMENT. NOW, ALMOST AT THE EXACT SAME MOMENT, GOVERNOR REYNOLDS SIGNED THE BILL, DISTRICT COURT JUDGE JOSEPH SALEN DECIDED NOT TO ISSUE A RULING FROM THE BENCH. I CANNOT THINK OF ANYTHING THAT IS WOULD BE MORE INSULTING TO EITHER SIDE THAN FOR A JUDGE WHO BEFORE WEDNESDAY AT 11:00, HAD NO IDEA THAT HE WAS GOING TO BE INVOLVED IN ANY OF THIS. WOULD LISTEN TO ARGUMENTS AND THEN RULE FROM THE BENCH. NOW, SALEN TOLD THE COURTROOM HE WOULD HOPE TO MAKE A A RULING BY MONDAY OR TUESDAY AT THE ABSOLUTE LATEST. BUT UNTIL AN INJUNCTION IS GRANTED, THE LAW THAT GOVERNOR REYNOLDS SIGNED TODAY IS IN EFFECT. WE’RE LIVE IN DES MOINES, BEAU BOWMAN KCCI EIGHT NEWS IOWA’S NEWS LEADER AND GOVERNOR REYNOLDS SIGNED THAT NEW LAW IN FRONT OF THE STATE’S TOP EVANGELICAL LEADERS AND REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES. KCCI IS JAMES STRATTON SHOWS US HOW WE GOT HERE. JAMES AND STACY WITH THE STROKE OF A PEN, GOVERNOR KIM REYNOLDS HEAVILY RESTRICTED ABORTION IN OUR STATE. SHE SIGNED THE BILL IN FRONT OF ABOUT 2000 SUPPORTERS AT THE FAMILY LEADERSHIP SUMMIT IN DES MOINES. THE LEGISLATION BLOCKS ABORTION. ONCE A FETAL HEARTBEAT CAN BE DETECTED. THE LAW STATES. DOCTORS SAY CARDIAC ACTIVITY IS USUALLY DETECTED AROUND SIX WEEKS OF PREGNANCY AND BEFORE MANY WOMEN KNOW THAT THEY’RE EVEN PREGNANT. THE BILL PASSED AFTER A ONE DAY SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE SESSION EARLIER THIS WEEK THAT LASTED ROUGHLY 14 HOURS. TODAY, GOVERNOR KIM REYNOLDS CELEBRATED THAT BILL BEFORE SIGNING PROTECTING UNBORN BORN HUMAN LIVES FROM THE ATROCITY OF ABORTION, A WORTHY BATTLE AND ONE I WILL NEVER CONCEDE THIS WEEK IN A RARE AND HISTORIC SPECIAL SESSION, THE IOWA LEGISLATURE VOTED FOR A SECOND TIME TO REJECT THE INHUMANITY OF ABORTION AND PASS THE FETAL HEARTBEAT LAW IN THAT NEW LAW IS ALMOST IDENTICAL TO THAT ONE THAT PASSED IN 2018, ULTIMATELY BLOCKED BY A POLK COUNTY JUDGE BEFORE IT WENT UP. THE SYSTEM ALL THE WAY TO THE SUPREME COURT. THIS TIME A LOWER INTERPRETATION OF THE LAW COULD BE IMPLEMENTED WHEN DECIDING IF IT’S UNCONSTITUTIONAL. AGAIN, AS BEAU SAID, THAT POLL COUNTY JUDGE HOPES TO MAKE THAT DECISION MONDAY, HE SAID TUESDAY AT THE VERY LATEST. STACY JAMES, THANK YOU. IOWA DEMOCRATS BELIEVE THE NEW RESTRICTIONS GO AGAINST WHAT THE MAJORITY OF IOWANS WANT. IN A STATEMENT, CHAIRPERSON RITA HART SAYS, QUOTE, KIM REYNOLDS SHOWED HOW MUCH SHE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT IOWANS WHEN SHE SIGNED A CRUEL, UNPOPULAR ABORTION BILL INTO LAW.

An Iowa judge on Friday afternoon heard a request to postpone the state’s new ban on most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, just as Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the measure into law in front of 2,000 conservative Christians barely a mile away. The hearing in Polk County court ended around 2:45 p.m. The judge said he hoped to have a ruling by the end of the day on Monday, July 17.The split screen punctuates a bitter battle between abortion advocates and opponents in Iowa that has dragged on for years and will likely, for now, remain unresolved as the courts assess the law’s constitutionality. Watch the hearing on KCCI's YouTube pageThe new legislation prohibits almost all abortions once a fetal heartbeat can be detected, according to the law's text. Cardiac activity is usually detectable around six weeks of pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant. The bill passed with exclusively Republican support late on Tuesday at the conclusion of a rare, 14-hour special legislative session.Before Reynolds signed the bill into law, abortion in Iowa was legal up to 20 weeks of pregnancy. That could be reinstated if the judge decides to issue a temporary hold.The legal challenge was filed Wednesday morning by the ACLU of Iowa, Planned Parenthood North Central States and the Emma Goldman Clinic.The new measure will be considered in the context of decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court and Iowa’s Supreme Court last year, when both reversed themselves on rulings that had affirmed a woman’s fundamental constitutional right to abortion.Those decisions prompted Reynolds to ask the court to reinstate her blocked 2018 law, which is nearly identical to the new one. The state’s high court deadlocked last month, prompting Reynolds to call lawmakers back to the Iowa Capitol.“The Iowa Supreme Court questioned whether this legislature would pass the same law they did in 2018, and today they have a clear answer,” Reynolds said Tuesday in a statement. “Justice for the unborn should not be delayed.”Recent abortion coverageIowa Legislature passes abortion restrictions, bill goes to governor's desk'Fetal heartbeat' bill: How each Iowa lawmaker voted in special sessionWhat are the exemptions to Iowa's new abortion bill?Lawsuit filed to block enforcement of Iowa's new abortion restrictions'Overjoyed': Women against abortion react to 'fetal heartbeat' bill, share personal stories‘It feels like a hostile attack’: Iowa doctor expresses concern over new abortion restrictionsWatch: What are the exemptions to Iowa's new abortion bill?Planned Parenthood North Central States said Wednesday they are preparing to have to refer patients to other states if the law isn’t blocked but are hopeful there will not be an interruption in their services.“We are seeking to block the ban because we know that every day this law is in effect, Iowans will face life-threatening barriers to getting desperately needed medical care — just as we have seen in other states with similar bans,” Rita Bettis Austen, legal director for the ACLU of Iowa, said in a statement.As of Wednesday, 200 patients were scheduled for abortions at Iowa Planned Parenthood or the Emma Goldman Clinic this week and next, according to the court filings. Most of them past the six-week mark in their pregnancies.There are limited circumstances under the measure that would allow for abortion after the point in a pregnancy where cardiac activity is detected: rape, if reported to law enforcement or a health provider within 45 days; incest, if reported within 145 days; if the fetus has a fetal abnormality “incompatible with life”; or if the pregnancy is endangering the life of the pregnant woman.Most Republican-led states have drastically limited abortion access in the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and handed authority on abortion law to the states. More than a dozen states have bans with limited exceptions and one state, Georgia, bans abortion after cardiac activity is detected. Several other states have similar restrictions that are on hold pending court rulings. Video: ‘It feels like a hostile attack’: Iowa doctor expresses concern over new abortion restrictionsVideo: ‘Overjoyed’: Women against abortion react to ‘fetal heartbeat’ bill, share personal storiesVideo: Iowa lawmakers get personal during special session on abortionVideo: Iowa Legislature passes abortion restrictions, bill goes to governor's desk

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) —

The hearing in Polk County court ended around 2:45 p.m. The judge said he hoped to have a ruling by the end of the day on Monday, July 17.

The split screen punctuates a bitter battle between abortion advocates and opponents in Iowa that has dragged on for years and will likely, for now, remain unresolved as the courts assess the law’s constitutionality.

Watch the hearing on KCCI's YouTube page

The new legislation prohibits almost all abortions once a fetal heartbeat can be detected, according to the law's text. Cardiac activity is usually detectable around six weeks of pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant. The bill passed with exclusively Republican support late on Tuesday at the conclusion of a rare, 14-hour special legislative session.

Before Reynolds signed the bill into law, abortion in Iowa was legal up to 20 weeks of pregnancy. That could be reinstated if the judge decides to issue a temporary hold.

The legal challenge was filed Wednesday morning by the ACLU of Iowa, Planned Parenthood North Central States and the Emma Goldman Clinic.

The new measure will be considered in the context of decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court and Iowa’s Supreme Court last year, when both reversed themselves on rulings that had affirmed a woman’s fundamental constitutional right to abortion.

Those decisions prompted Reynolds to ask the court to reinstate her blocked 2018 law, which is nearly identical to the new one. The state’s high court deadlocked last month, prompting Reynolds to call lawmakers back to the Iowa Capitol.

“The Iowa Supreme Court questioned whether this legislature would pass the same law they did in 2018, and today they have a clear answer,” Reynolds said Tuesday in a statement. “Justice for the unborn should not be delayed.”

Recent abortion coverage

Watch: What are the exemptions to Iowa's new abortion bill?

Planned Parenthood North Central States said Wednesday they are preparing to have to refer patients to other states if the law isn’t blocked but are hopeful there will not be an interruption in their services.

“We are seeking to block the ban because we know that every day this law is in effect, Iowans will face life-threatening barriers to getting desperately needed medical care — just as we have seen in other states with similar bans,” Rita Bettis Austen, legal director for the ACLU of Iowa, said in a statement.

As of Wednesday, 200 patients were scheduled for abortions at Iowa Planned Parenthood or the Emma Goldman Clinic this week and next, according to the court filings. Most of them past the six-week mark in their pregnancies.

There are limited circumstances under the measure that would allow for abortion after the point in a pregnancy where cardiac activity is detected: rape, if reported to law enforcement or a health provider within 45 days; incest, if reported within 145 days; if the fetus has a fetal abnormality “incompatible with life”; or if the pregnancy is endangering the life of the pregnant woman.

Most Republican-led states have drastically limited abortion access in the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and handed authority on abortion law to the states. More than a dozen states have bans with limited exceptions and one state, Georgia, bans abortion after cardiac activity is detected. Several other states have similar restrictions that are on hold pending court rulings.

Video: ‘It feels like a hostile attack’: Iowa doctor expresses concern over new abortion restrictions

Video: ‘Overjoyed’: Women against abortion react to ‘fetal heartbeat’ bill, share personal stories

Video: Iowa lawmakers get personal during special session on abortion

Video: Iowa Legislature passes abortion restrictions, bill goes to governor's desk

Judge considering temporary block of new abortion law

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