In a federal appeals court session in Seattle, Idaho’s Deputy Solicitor General Joshua Turner advocated for the reinstatement of a 2023 state law aimed at criminalizing the facilitation of minors crossing state lines for abortions without parental consent.
Turner argued that the law was narrowly crafted to prevent adults from aiding unemancipated minors in obtaining abortions while concealing the act from their parents or guardians.
However, a federal judge in Boise halted the enforcement of this law in November following a lawsuit filed by Lourdes Matsumoto, the Northwest Abortion Access Fund, and the Indigenous Idaho Alliance.
They contended that the law infringed upon their First Amendment rights by restricting their ability to provide information about accessing abortions to minors.
During the appeals court session, Judge M. Margaret McKeown questioned how transporting individuals could constitute protected speech under the First Amendment.
She also explored the possibility of blocking specific provisions of the law, such as the prohibition on “recruiting,” while allowing other aspects related to harboring and transporting to remain in effect.
Turner indicated openness to such modifications, suggesting that the recruitment provision could be blocked while retaining prohibitions on harboring and transporting.
Idaho’s law is part of a broader legal landscape challenging regulations that criminalize assistance for individuals seeking abortions in states where the procedure is legal.
This case emerges against the backdrop of the U.S. Supreme Court‘s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the ruling that established abortion rights nationwide.
The debate over such laws extends beyond Idaho, with healthcare providers and advocacy groups in Alabama also challenging similar restrictions on aiding abortion travel.
As the legal battle unfolds, it underscores the ongoing tension between state regulations seeking to limit access to abortion and constitutional protections safeguarding individuals’ rights to free speech and reproductive healthcare.
