Appeals court sees little urgency in speeding up challenge to Texas abortion ban after contentious hearing

CNN reported on the “tense” hearing held January 7 in which the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals signaled that — for now — it was likely to keep the Texas abortion case out of the hands of a federal judge who in the past had blocked the state’s six-week ban on abortion.The 5th Circuit panel is deciding what should come next in abortion clinics’ federal lawsuit challenging the ban after the Supreme Court kept the case alive in a decision handed down last month.

Even though the law, Texas SB8, has ended most abortion access in the state since it went into effect on September 1, at the hearing Judge Edith Jones said “Maybe we should just sit on this until the end of June,” citing a separate challenge to Roe v. Wade already at the high court.

“Appeals court sees little urgency in speeding up challenge to Texas abortion ban after contentious hearing,” CNN, 01.07.22

Read more about the Texas case, Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson, here.