TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Most women seeking abortions in Florida will have to wait 24 hours and make at least two doctor visits after an appeals court Friday reinstated a law imposing the waiting period.
The First District Court of Appeal struck down a temporary injunction against the law issued by a Leon County trial court judge last year, citing a lack of evidence.
The law has exceptions for cases of rape, incest, domestic abuse or human trafficking, but victims must provide a police report or restraining order to their doctor as proof of those circumstances.
"I'm absolutely ecstatic," said state Rep. Jennifer Sullivan, R-Mount Dora, who sponsored the law the Legislature approved last year. "I think the judges were really in disbelief by the lack of evidence produced by the clinic."
A lawsuit challenging the law was brought by Gainesville Woman Care and the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which claimed it was an undue intrusion into a woman's right to privacy.
ACLU officials vowed to keep fighting the case.
"A woman who has decided to have an abortion should be able to get one without the state putting up unnecessary roadblocks to prevent her from getting the care she needs," said ACLU staff attorney Julia Kaye.
But Sullivan said the law was about giving women more time to make an informed decision. "I think this is really going to go a long way for women to be more comfortable with their doctor," Sullivan said. "I think this is one step forward in women's health."
Laura Goodhue, executive director of the Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, a network of women's health clinics that provide abortions, was dismayed by the ruling but said the clinics would abide by the law.
"The state should support medically appropriate and scientifically based health care policies, not legislation introduced with the intention of shaming, coercing or judging a woman," Goodhue said.
Orlando Sentinel
