The Attorney General of Texas has appealed to the Supreme Court of this very conservative American state to suspend a court decision having authorized a woman with a very risky pregnancy to abort, demanding a response from this institution on Friday according to a court document.
On Thursday, a Texas judge authorized the use of abortion for Kate Cox, 31, whose pregnancy could, according to her doctor, threaten her life and her fertility, a rare decision in this state which prohibits abortion with very rare exceptions. , one of the strictest laws in this area in the United States.
“Texas law prohibits voluntary abortions,” underlined Attorney General Ken Paxton, affirming that the judge had “abused her power” without “any evidence” while “the Texas medical expert estimated that Mme Cox did not meet the necessary conditions to benefit from the medical exception.”
In his petition, Ken Paxton, an ultraconservative Republican, called on the Texas Supreme Court to “stay” this decision.
Kate Cox had confirmation last week that her fetus had trisomy 18, a chromosomal anomaly associated with serious malformations. During the emergency hearing Thursday, Judge Maya Guerra Gamble granted her the opportunity to have an abortion.
In a press release, accompanied by a letter addressed to Texan hospitals, Ken Paxton had already warned Thursday against “the potential long-term implications” if these establishments authorized abortion.
Calling the judge “activist,” he said her ruling in favor of the plaintiff would not protect these hospitals, “nor any other person, from being held civilly and criminally liable for violating Texas health laws. abortion.”
In the summer of 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned its “Roe v. Wade”, which had guaranteed for half a century the federal right of American women to terminate their pregnancies.
Since then, around twenty states have banned abortion or severely restricted it, such as Texas, which only authorizes it in cases of danger of death or risk of serious disability for the mother.