A pregnant woman sues for the right to an abortion in challenge to Kentucky’s near-total ban

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A pregnant woman filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking the right to an abortion in Kentucky in the latest challenge to the state’s near-total ban on the procedure.

The suit, filed in state court in Louisville, claims that Kentucky laws blocking abortions violate the plaintiff’s rights to privacy and self-determination under the state constitution.

The woman, a state resident identified by the pseudonym Mary Poe to protect her privacy, is about seven weeks pregnant, the suit said. She wants to terminate her pregnancy but cannot legally do so, it said.

“Without the ability to decide whether to continue a pregnancy, Kentuckians have lost the right to make critical decisions about their health, bodies, lives and futures,” the suit said.

It is seeking class-action status to include others who are or will become pregnant and want the right to have an abortion.

The suit is challenging Kentucky’s near-total trigger law ban and a separate six-week ban, both of which were passed by Republican legislative majorities.

The trigger law took effect when Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 and bans abortions except to save the life of the patient or to prevent disabling injury. It does not include exceptions for cases of rape or incest.

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The lawsuit is similar to legal action taken nearly a year ago, also by a pregnant woman who sought the right to an abortion. That challenge was dropped after the woman learned her embryo no longer had cardiac activity, but abortion rights groups said the legal fight was far from over.

Defendants in the latest suit include Russell Coleman, Kentucky’s Republican attorney general. His office did not immediately comment.

Kentucky’s Supreme Court refused last year to halt the near-total ban, resulting in abortion access remaining virtually shut off in Kentucky. Abortion rights groups have searched for a plaintiff to challenge the ban.