DeSantis admin blocked in abortion ad fight until after Election Day, judge rules
A Florida judge extended a temporary restraining order until after the election that blocks the state government from threatening to take legal action against television stations over pro-abortion ads.
Floridians Protecting Freedom, the group behind the Amendment 4 Right to Abortion Initiative to enshrine abortion in the state constitution, which is on the ballot on Election Day, filed a lawsuit earlier this month against Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo and former health department counsel John Wilson, following threats from the Florida Department of Health to TV stations over abortion ads aired.
In its letter, the health department stated the advertisements were "false" and "dangerous" and requested the ads be removed within 24 hours, or it would proceed with legal measures.
District Judge Mark E. Walker initially granted the plaintiff's request for a temporary restraining order. The order was set to expire on Tuesday, but Walker extended it until Nov. 12 – one week after the election.
"…this Court concludes that Plaintiff continues to have standing for the same reasons articulated in the temporary restraining order and that good cause exists to extend the temporary restraining order, because this Court requires additional time to review the arguments for and against the motion for preliminary injunction and to draft an Order on the motion," Walker wrote in the order.
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Yes on 4 cheered the decision.
"While this case isn’t over, this second ruling is once again a critical victory for every Floridian who believes in democracy and the sanctity of the First Amendment," Lauren Brenzel, the group's campaign director, said in a statement. "Once again, the court has affirmed what we’ve known all along: the government cannot silence the truth about Florida’s extreme abortion ban. It’s a deadly ban that puts women’s lives at risk. This ruling continues to remind us that Floridians will not back down in the face of government intimidation."
The order will expire on Nov. 12 or when the court enters an order on the plaintiff's motion for preliminary injunction.
Amendment 4's language states, "No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's healthcare provider."
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In its initial filing, Floridians Protecting Freedom argued that the state government's legal threats were a violation of Floridians Protecting Freedom's First Amendment right to run political advertisements in support of the proposed amendment.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called the measure a "bait and switch" during a press conference in Winter Garden, days after the initial order was issued.
Former President Trump previously called Florida's proposed amendment "radical" in an interview with Fox News, but said he also believes Florida's six-week abortion restriction is too short.
Fox News Digital's Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.