Abortion

Judge Jerri Zhang has yet to issue her ruling in a lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood that seeks to strike down the state’s ban on abortions. A voter-approved amendment protecting abortion access goes into effect Friday.

After voters approved Amendment 3 in November, Planned Parenthood attorneys want to overturn a number of Missouri laws that regulate abortion services and providers. A court decision on the lawsuit could come soon.

Anti-abortion rights groups and politicians argued before the November election that Amendment 3 would block most abortion restrictions. But Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is now arguing it doesn’t overturn some restrictions on clinics.

The leader of Planned Parenthood Great Plains says the move is a ploy to prevent a Jackson County judge from potentially knocking down other abortion restrictions.

The Democrat will represent portions of southwest St. Louis in the Missouri House when he’s sworn into office in January.

Missourians have backed ballot items supported by Democrats in the past decade while also giving Republicans unfettered control over state government.

Religious leaders had challenged the state’s near-total ban on the grounds it contained explicitly religious language.

Attorneys with the Thomas More Society filed the federal lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of several organizations including Students for Life of America, Pro-Life Action League and Illinois Right to Life. It names Gov. JB Pritzker, Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Department of Insurance Director Ann Gillespie as defendants.

The wait time for phone calls to Planned Parenthood of Illinois also doubled in the days immediately after the election.

Pro-life group challenges city’s now-repealed ‘buffer zone’ law, potentially reshaping protest laws nationwide.