Ellison: No appeal to defend Minnesota abortion restrictions

Jul 28, 2022, 9:51 AM | Updated: 9:55 am

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Attorney General Keith Ellison said Thursday that he won’t appeal a ruling that struck down most of Minnesota’s restrictions on abortion as unconstitutional, saying the state has already spent enough time and money on the case and is unlikely to win an appeal anyway.

Ellison, a Democrat who supports abortion rights, called his decision “in the public interest and … the right legal decision.”

Ramsey County Judge Thomas Gilligan on July 11 overturned a series of restrictions on abortion over the years, including a mandatory 24-hour waiting period and a requirement that both parents be notified before a minor can get an abortion.

He also eliminated a rule that only physicians can perform abortions, a move expected to eventually ease access to abortion in the state, which has become an island of legal abortion in the Upper Midwest.

Abortion opponents and the Republicans hoping to unseat Ellison in November’s election had demanded that he appeal the ruling, saying he was obligated to do so as the state’s top law enforcement officer.

In his statement Thursday, Ellison said his office had spent $600,000 defending the laws over three years of litigation. He also noted that an appeal would put the case back before Gilligan, the same judge who invalidated the laws.

“I have made clear throughout that my personal view has been that the challenged laws were not good public policy,” he said. “I have nonetheless vigorously defended those laws.”

Minnesota abortion providers had already been seeing a surge from as far away as Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama even before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade late last month. They say it’s too early to speculate as to how much Monday’s decision might accelerate that, but they agree it will greatly help them cope.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

(Facebook Photo/Superior Court of Arizona in Yavapai County)...
Associated Press

Arizona judge has cases reassigned following DUI arrest

The Arizona Supreme Court has ruled that all cases currently assigned to a Yavapai County Superior Court judge recently arrested on suspicion of extreme DUI will be reassigned to other judges.
4 days ago
Haitian migrant Gerson Solay, 28, carries his daughter, Bianca, as he and his family cross into Can...
Associated Press

US, Canada to end loophole that allows asylum-seekers to move between countries

President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday announced a plan to close a loophole to an immigration agreement.
7 days ago
Expert skateboarder Di'Orr Greenwood, an artist born and raised in the Navajo Nation in Arizona and...
Associated Press

Indigenous skateboard art featured on new stamps unveiled at Phoenix skate park

The Postal Service unveiled the “Art of the Skateboard" stamps at a Phoenix skate park, featuring designs from Indigenous artists.
7 days ago
(Facebook Photo/City of San Luis, Arizona)...
Associated Press

San Luis authorities receive complaints about 911 calls going across border

Authorities in San Luis say they are receiving more complaints about 911 calls mistakenly going across the border.
13 days ago
(Pexels Photo)...
Associated Press

Daylight saving time begins in most of US this weekend

No time change is observed in Hawaii, most of Arizona, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas.
21 days ago
Mexican army soldiers prepare a search mission for four U.S. citizens kidnapped by gunmen in Matamo...
Associated Press

How the 4 abducted Americans in Mexico were located

The anonymous tip that led Mexican authorities to a remote shack where four abducted Americans were held described armed men and blindfolds.
21 days ago

Sponsored Articles

(Pexels Photo)...

Sports gambling can be fun for adults, but it’s a dangerous game for children

While adults may find that sports gambling is a way to enhance the experience with more than just fandom on the line, it can be a dangerous proposition if children get involved in the activity.
...
Fiesta Bowl Foundation

Celebrate 50 years of Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Parade magic!

Since its first production in the early 1970s, the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Parade presented by Lerner & Rowe has been a staple of Valley traditions, bringing family fun and excitement to downtown Phoenix.
...
Day & Night Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing

Prep the plumbing in your home just in time for the holidays

With the holidays approaching, it's important to know when your home is in need of heating and plumbing updates before more guests start to come around.
Ellison: No appeal to defend Minnesota abortion restrictions