Texas judge launches first lawsuit under abortion ban

A Texas judge has dismissed the first lawsuit filed under the state’s controversial abortion ban.

Bexar County Judge Aaron Haas dismissed a lawsuit filed by Chicago attorney Felipe Gomez against Dr. Alan Braid of San Antonio after the doctor wrote in a Washington Post Op-Ed that he intentionally violated the state abortion law just days after it went into effect. September.

The law prohibits abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy and allows civil suits against anyone “aiding or abetting” an illegal abortion, for a minimum of $10,000 in damages.

In the opinion piece published Sept. 18, Braid wrote that he performed the procedure on a woman more than six weeks into her pregnancy “because I had a duty of care to this patient, as I do this for all patients, and because she has a fundamental right to receive this care.

“I fully understood that there could be legal consequences – but I wanted to make sure that Texas didn’t get away with its attempt to prevent this blatantly unconstitutional law from being tested,” he said. he adds.

Haas ruled from the bench that a person not directly affected by the abortion procedure did not have standing to sue an abortion provider.

While the ruling does not overturn the Texas abortion ban that went into effect after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade this summer, opponents hope the ruling will set a precedent that someone must show he was injured to file a lawsuit, the San Antonio Express News reported.

Gomez said he filed a notice of appeal.

With post wires