A law creating a 24-hour mandatory waiting period before a woman would be allowed to get an abortion went into effect Wednesday after Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi filed an appeal staying a circuit court judge’s block of the law.
Appeals aren’t entirely common, but Bondi took the reins of her legal authority to stay Circuit Court Judge Charles Francis’ emergency injunction Tuesday evening.
Francis’ temporary injunction meant the law wouldn’t go into effect as planned, but Bondi’s swift appeal means the mandatory waiting period will still move forward, at least for the time being.
As Sunshine State News reported Tuesday, Francis could still decide to lift the stay, but had not done so as of Wednesday evening.
Gov. Rick Scott was particularly supportive of the law, which was one of the few bills to pass through the Legislature this year.
"As a parent and a grandparent, the sanctity of life is important to me,” he said. “This 24-hour waiting period is an important step to protecting life while ensuring there is more time to make a life-changing decision.”
Sunshine State News reached out to Bondi’s office to get specifics on whether the attorney general had been in contact with Scott, since appeals aren’t standard practice and are usually discussed on a case-by-case basis.
SSN also asked whether any of the state legislators backing the bill -- including Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami, and Rep. Jennifer Sullivan, R-Mount Dora -- had consulted with the AG’s office before bringing their bills to the Senate and House floors.
Bondi’s office declined to comment on any aspects of the case.
It’s not clear what the next steps will be in the legal proceedings, but the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which has been staunchly opposed to the law, asked Judge Francis to reinstate the injunction Tuesday evening, only 10 minutes after Bondi’s office filed its appeal.
By Wednesday, the case had been transferred to a new judge as a result of an annual rotation of judges.
"The court's decision was grounded in the Florida Constitution's right to privacy," said ACLU of Florida legal director Nancy Abudu. "We were very happy to be able to convince the court that there was no medical justification for this law."
The Center for Reproductive Rights said it would continue to press on with the lawsuit.
“We will continue to fight this demeaning law until the courts permanently strike it down and ensure no Florida woman is ever forced to wait for purely political reasons to get the health care she needs,” said Autumn Katz, staff attorney at the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Reach Tampa-based reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen
