Marion Superior Court 1 today granted a request filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana to temporarily block Indiana’s abortion ban. The court granted the preliminary injunction stating that the plaintiffs, Hoosier Jews for Choice and five women, are “likely to prevail on their claims that S.E.A. 1 violates RFRA” (Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act).
The law, Senate Enrolled Act 1, was also temporarily blocked in September as part of another lawsuit filed by the ACLU of Indiana, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the Lawyering Project, and WilmerHale on behalf of health care providers and a pregnancy resource center, which claims the abortion ban violates both the Indiana Constitution’s right to privacy and equal privileges protections.
“Abortion is legal in Indiana today. This preliminary injunction acts as a second layer of protection, ensuring the rights of Hoosiers on the grounds of religious freedom,” said Ken Falk, ACLU of Indiana Legal Director. “This decision represents another crucial victory for abortion access, and we will continue to fight this ban until it is blocked for good.”
According to the ACLU of Indiana lawsuit, although some religions believe that human life begins at conception, this is not an opinion shared by all religions or all religious people.
The plaintiffs represent a wide variety of faiths including, Judaism, Islam, and independent spiritual belief systems.
