Attorney General Steve Marshall on Monday celebrated the "countless lives saved" from abortion after the state was able to implement its hefty restrictions on abortion since the overturning of Roe V. Wade two years ago to the day.
The Alabama Legislature passed the most stringent restrictions in the country, which Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law on May 15, 2019. The law, called the Human Life Protection Act, was supposed to take effect in November 2019. However, a month earlier, in October 2019, U.S. District Court Judge Myron Thompson issued an injunction stopping the law's implementation.
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022. That same day, Marshall's office filed motions to dissolve the injunction. Thompson swiftly lifted the injunction in his Montgomery court, saying the legal underpinning for the injunction "no longer exists" after the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization overturned Roe.
Alabama's law currently makes it a felony to perform an abortion but does not offer any punishment for mothers who procure an abortion. State Democrats have attempted in the following years to add rape and incest exemptions to the state's law but never received any legitimate consideration in either chamber of the legislature.
Marshall is still fighting to expand the scope of the penalties in the Human Life Protection Act. However, on the second anniversary of Roe's demise, Marshall took to social media to praise the state's success in saving lives by cutting down on the number of abortions.
"Two years ago, the Supreme Court restored to the people the right to protect unborn life," Marshall said. "Today we celebrate the countless lives saved, and we continue to work towards finding ways to support mothers. Life is winning in Alabama."
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
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