The Indiana Court of Appeals largely affirmed an injunction placed on Indiana’s near-total abortion ban on Thursday. The unanimous ruling will return the lawsuit to the trial court so that the impact of the trial court’s injunction may be redefined.
The Court of Appeals mentioned that the trial court’s injunction could potentially enjoin activities not covered by the First Amendment or the Religious Freedom and Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA). As a result, the injunction would need to be refined.
Religious groups including Hoosier Jews for Choice argued the near-total abortion ban infiltrates their religious freedom as guarded by the RFRA. The lawsuit was initiated by the Indiana chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) aiming to safeguard religious liberty. The ACLU espoused that the ability to obtain an abortion for many Hoosiers is a prerequisite based on sincerely held religious beliefs, and Indiana’s abortion ban imposes a significant and life-altering burden on these individuals. The Court of Appeals upheld this notion in its decision.
Primarily, the aforementioned religious freedom pertains to Jewish and Muslim citizens of Indiana. It is a commonly held belief amongst these faiths that life begins at birth, not conception, and that the life, health, and well-being of the mother take precedence over that of the fetus. Because of these beliefs, various Jewish and Muslim interest groups have initiated litigation against abortion laws nationwide.
Indiana Right to Life, an interest group pushing for more abortion control and complete abolition, held the view that the judgment was wrongly decided. In their press release, they contended that the Indiana Supreme Court had already determined that the state has a compelling interest in protecting unborn life which is exactly what the new abortion-restriction law is doing. They expressed confidence in their state prevailing over any claims suggesting that abortion—the deliberated ending of innocent and helpless human life—is a religious freedom.
It’s predicted that the Indiana Supreme Court will hear an appeal on this judgment soon. You can read the details of the case here.