State of Tennessee Attempts to Dismiss Case Filed by Women Denied Abortions in Dangerous Situations
11.02.23 (PRESS RELEASE) – Last night, the State of Tennessee filed a motion attempting to throw out a lawsuit filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of two Tennessee doctors and three women who were denied abortion care despite facing dangerous pregnancy complications (Blackmon v. State of Tennessee).
In defense of its total abortion ban, the State of Tennessee filed a motion to dismiss the case in court today denying the devastating harms that the law has had on pregnant people in the state. The move comes just one day after Idaho filed a motion to dismiss a similar case filed by the Center.
In its motion to dismiss the case, the State makes egregious claims, including:
- The State claims that pregnant people do not deserve the same protection for their lives as non-pregnant people, writing: “Equal-protection limits do not mandate the same treatment of differently situated people”
- The State claims that “the medical exception is sufficiently clear” despite widespread confusion among doctors about what conditions qualify under the ban, which lead to the plaintiffs’ being denied emergency abortion care. The State tries to avoid its responsibility for Plaintiffs’ ordeals by saying that they were caused by “doctors’ independent choices not to provide permissible abortions.”
- The State claims that lead plaintiff, Nicole Blackmon, can’t sue the state because she had her tubes tied for fear of getting pregnant again after the suffering she experienced under the ban, arguing that it is insufficient for her to “sue so ‘no one else’ will suffer.”
In response, the Center for Reproductive Rights and lead plaintiff Nicole Blackmon have issued the following statements:
“No one should ever have to go through what I went through. Tennessee lawmakers put my life in danger with this abortion ban,” said Nicole Blackmon, lead plaintiff in the case. “My fellow plaintiffs and I are asking for the bare minimum–the right to basic health care during the many risky complications that arise during pregnancy. Instead, our own state is trying to pretend that what we experienced never happened. It’s a disgrace.”
“It is dangerous to be pregnant in Tennessee. Still, lawmakers have turned a blind eye to the suffering they are causing across the state,” said Linda Goldstein, Senior Counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights. “The State cannot just sweep this case under the rug—they must be held accountable for the countless lives that are put at risk every day. The women and doctors in this case will not be silenced. Your right to life does not evaporate when you become pregnant. We will keep fighting to get clarity on the law and ensure people can get the abortion care they need when they need it.”
Blackmon v. State of Tennessee was filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights in September 2023, asking the court to clarify what circumstances qualify under the “medical emergency” exception in Tennessee’s abortion ban. Confusing language and non-medical terminology in the law has left doctors uncertain about when they are legally able to provide abortion care without being prosecuted. Doctors in the state face loss of licensure and up to 15 years in prison for violating the law. Meanwhile, pregnant people are being forced to either wait until they are near death to receive care or flee the state if they have the means to do so.
The lawsuit was filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights, Morrison & Foerster LLP, and Barrett, Johnston, Martin, & Garrison LLC on behalf of plaintiffs Nicole Blackmon; Allyson Phillips; Kaitlyn Dulong; Heather Maune, M.D.; and Laura Andreson, D.O. Defendants in the case are the State of Tennessee, Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners, and President of the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners, Melanie Blake M.D.
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