Judges rule on state abortion restrictions, shape Roe impact

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A judge in Utah was deciding Monday whether to allow a trigger-law ban on abortion to take effect while a Minnesota judge declared most of that state's restrictions on abortion unconstitutional, as the implications of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade are being sorted out nationwide.

In Michigan, a campaign turned in a record-breaking number of signatures so voters can be asked on the November ballot whether to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.

Last month's Dobbs v. Jackson ruling overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that found that the right to abortion was protected by the U.S. Constitution. The issue reverted to the states, setting off new court battles and ballot initiatives as many states act to curtail or ban abortions.

Utah is among more than a dozen states with trigger laws designed to limit abortion upon the overturning of Roe v. Wade. The Utah law bans nearly all abortions, except for in cases of rape, incest or when maternal health is threatened. A Republican-appointed judge blocked its enforcement for 14 days after the state's branch of Planned Parenthood sued.

Planned Parenthood argues the law violates the Utah Constitution’s equal protection and right to privacy provisions. Utah’s attorneys argue that state abortion bans pre-dating Roe span to when the state constitution was drafted and accuse Planned Parenthood of trying to “interrupt and ultimately override the Legislature’s judgment.”

The judge's temporary restraining order expired Monday. District Court Judge Andrew Stone is now deciding whether to grant a preliminary injunction, which would let Planned Parenthood clinics continue to provide abortion care until the court rules on the constitutional questions.

Since the case began, another Utah law banning most abortions after...