The fight over Ohio鈥檚 six-week abortion ban, one of the strictest in the country, continues in court.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican, has appealed a judge鈥檚 decision striking down that ban after last year鈥檚 approval of Issue 1, a constitutional amendment protecting access to abortion.
The six-week ban, which does not include exceptions for rape or incest, went into effect after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the right to abortion in June 2022. Enforcement of the ban in October 2022 after abortion providers sued.
Yost said before last fall鈥檚 vote to guarantee abortion and reproductive rights in the constitution that the six-week ban would not exist if the amendment were approved. But he鈥檚 since suggested that provisions requiring an ultrasound and distribution of information also in the law, which passed in 2019 as , could still stand even after the amendment鈥檚 approval.
After Issue 1 was approved last fall, the Ohio Supreme Court sent the case back to Hamilton County, where it was filed.
Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Christian Jenkins wrote in his decision overturning the ban last month that 鈥淥hio voters have spoken. The Ohio Constitution now unequivocally protects the right to abortion.鈥�
Yost's spokesperson said in a statement: 鈥淪eeking appellate review is a necessary and appropriate step. The state respects the will of the people regarding the six-week abortion ban, but the state is also obligated to protect provisions in SB23, as passed by the General Assembly and signed by the Governor, that the constitutional amendment does not address. It is up to the courts to determine how conflicts between those two documents are resolved.鈥�
Republicans who dominate the General Assembly have not repealed any abortion-related legislation since the reproductive rights amendment passed last fall - instead, they're allowing the courts to handle existing laws.
The case is likely to end up at the Ohio Supreme Court, which starting next year will have six Republicans and one Democrat on the bench.
