The Latest: Indiana governor disappointed by abortion ruling

The Latest: Indiana governor disappointed by abortion ruling


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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Latest on a judge blocking Indiana's law banning abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormalities (all times local):

4:30 p.m.

Republican Indiana Gov. Mike Pence's office says he is disappointed with a federal judge's decision to block a state law banning abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormalities.

Pence spokeswoman Kara Brooks said Thursday that the governor "remains steadfast in his support for the unborn, especially those with disabilities."

She says Pence believes citizens should be allowed "to determine appropriate medical safety standards and procedures through their elected representatives."

A federal judge ruled a day before the law was to take effect that the state doesn't have the authority to limit a woman's reasons for ending a pregnancy.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana sued the state on behalf of Planned Parenthood. ACLU attorney Ken Falk says he's confident the law will be found unconstitutional if the state continues its fight in court.

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3:15 p.m.

Indiana state Senate President David Long says he finds one part of the ruling that blocked a law banning abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormality "deeply troubling."

The lawsuit challenged the law's provision requiring that aborted fetuses be buried or cremated. Planned Parenthood currently disposes of remains by incineration, as with other medical tissue.

U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt's Thursday ruling blocks the burial or cremation requirement from taking effect.

Long, a Republican, said in a statement that equating "fetal remains with any other common medical waste is deeply troubling" and hopes that the court will change its mind.

Pratt ruled a day before the law was to go into effect that the state doesn't have the authority to limit a woman's reasons for ending a pregnancy.

Long also said that Indiana's attorney general has said he'll review Pratt's decision to temporarily block the law before saying whether he'll appeal.

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3 p.m.

Indiana Republican Gov. Mike Pence's opponent in this fall's election says a state law that aimed to prohibit abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormalities was misguided.

Democrat John Gregg said Thursday that the law approved by the Republican-dominated Legislature "was always more about Mike Pence's personal ideology than science, medicine or common sense."

A federal judge blocked the law from taking effect as scheduled on Friday, saying the state doesn't have the authority to limit a woman's reasons for ending a pregnancy.

The governor's office didn't immediately comment on the decision. Pence called the law one that "affirms the value of all human life" when he signed it in March.

Pence and Gregg are in a contentious rematch of the 2012 election, which Pence narrowly won.

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2:15 p.m.

A prominent Indiana anti-abortion group is urging the state to appeal a federal judge's decision to block a state law prohibiting abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormalities.

Indiana Right to Life president Mike Fichter called Thursday's ruling "an appalling human rights injustice."

U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt says she granted a preliminary injunction sought by Planned Parenthood of Indiana because the state doesn't have the authority to limit a woman's reasons for ending a pregnancy.

The executive director of the anti-abortion group America Family Association of Indiana says he wasn't surprised by Pratt's decision. Micah Clark says the state was probably pushing the envelope on limiting abortions, but believed it was protecting unborn children with genetic abnormalities, such as Down syndrome, from discrimination.

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1:30 p.m.

A federal judge says she decided to block an Indiana law prohibiting abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormalities because the state doesn't have the authority to limit a woman's reasons for ending a pregnancy.

U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt granted a preliminary injunction Thursday sought by Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky. The decision came a day before the law was to take effect.

Pratt said the Indiana law would go against U.S. Supreme Court rulings that states may not prohibit a woman from seeking an abortion before fetal viability.

An attorney for Indiana argued before Pratt earlier this month that the state has an interest in "preventing discrimination" against fetuses with genetic abnormalities, such as Down syndrome.

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1:10 p.m.

A federal judge has blocked a new Indiana law that bans abortions sought because of a fetus' genetic abnormalities.

U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt released a ruling Thursday that grants the preliminary injunction sought by Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky. The law was to set to take effect Friday.

Indiana and North Dakota are the only states with laws banning abortions that are sought due to fetal genetic abnormalities, such as Down syndrome, or because of the race, sex or ancestry of a fetus. It also requires that aborted fetuses be buried or cremated.

Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana sued the state in April, saying the law is unconstitutional and violates women's privacy rights. Pratt heard arguments June 14.

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