The Kentucky Supreme Court will be looking at the status of abortion in the commonwealth. The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky is seeking a temporary injunction to allow abortion procedures to continue while another case plays out in a lower court.
Amber Duke is the interim executive director for the ACLU of Kentucky. She said their case is based in the state Constitution.
“It’s our hope that, our case, which at the center of that is arguing the Kentucky Constitution guarantees the rights to privacy and bodily autonomy and self-determination, that a right to abortion can be found in Kentucky’s Constitution.”
Last week, Kentucky voters rejected a state Constitutional amendment that would have said there is no right to an abortion in that document.
In a statement, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said his office has filed a motion with the Supreme Court to explain why this outcome has no bearing on whether the Court should create a Kentucky version of Roe v. Wade.
Duke said this legal battle has been a little different for them.
“The speed that this has sort of raced up and down the Kentucky court system is unique, but there is sort of a difference for us, because normally we’re in the federal court litigating these cases. That is no longer an option for us after the Dobbs decision and we’ve had to pivot this fight to the state court.”
Kentucky’s Attorney General, Daniel Cameron issued a separate statement saying, “regulating abortion is a matter that should be left to the people’s representatives in the General Assembly.”
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