SALT LAKE CITY — The state's top court heard arguments over Utah's anti-abortion trigger law, which bans nearly all abortions.
For more than four hours on Tuesday, the justices grilled attorneys for the state of Utah and Planned Parenthood, which successfully obtained an injunction blocking the law from going into effect. The Utah Attorney General's Office is appealing a lower court's decision granting that injunction.
When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Utah's abortion trigger law went into effect. It bans abortion in almost all circumstances, with exceptions for rape, incest and health of the mother.
"When given the choice? The people of Utah, through their elected representatives, have prohibited abortion except in limited circumstances since before the state’s founding," said Taylor Meehan, an attorney representing the state.
The justices focused their questions around a series of topics, including whether Planned Parenthood Association of Utah had standing to bring a lawsuit or whether a pregnant woman seeking an abortion needed to sue; a new rule the legislature passed that raises the scrutiny on preliminary injunctions; and whether an equality clause in the Utah Constitution includes the right to abortion.
"Your argument is an abortion may be necessary to exercise other rights that are explicitly enumerated in the Utah Constitution?" Chief Justice Matthew Durrant asked Camila Vega, the attorney representing Planned Parenthood.
"That’s correct your honor," Vega replied, later adding: "Regardless of what people thought about abortion in 1895, equality today for the women of Utah requires access to abortion."
At another point in the hearing, Justice Diana Hagen raised a series of hypothetical situations around legislation involving C-sections and other medical procedures.
"What about vasectomies? Could the state outlaw vasectomies and not implicate any constitutional right?" she asked Meehan.
"At the time of the vasectomy? It’s one person," Meehan replied. "Whereas at the time of the abortion it is two people. Utah code recognizes the unborn child as a person."
Tuesday's hearing will not decide the constitutionality of the trigger law. The hearing is over whether the lower court was correct in issuing the injunction. The state believes the injunction should be overturned; Planned Parenthood argues it should remain in place.
The Court took the case under advisement with no timeline for a ruling. In the meantime, Utah's trigger law remains blocked and abortion is legal in Utah up until 18 weeks of pregnancy. Outside of court, both sides of the abortion issue expressed hope that the justices would side with them.
"We care about the unborn. We want to protect life and we’ve tried to build a law that does prohibit elective abortions and does anything to protect women who have been victims of rape and have medical emergencies that need to be cared for," said Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton, the sponsor of the trigger law.
Planned Parenthood Association of Utah CEO Kathryn Boyd called the hearing a "pivotal moment in reproductive rights in Utah."
"Every Utahn deserves the right to make their own medical decisions, to be in charge of that decision making and to get the care they want or need free of political interference," she told reporters outside of court. "We will continue to stand up for Utahns over and over and over again."
Mary Taylor, the president of Pro-Life Utah, left court feeling confident in the state's arguments.
"Litigation will continue regardless and we feel very good about the outcome," she told FOX 13 News.
"Same here," added Gayle Ruzicka, the president of the Utah Eagle Forum. "Of course, there’s going to be continued litigation. They’re not going to stop. It’ll go on for quite some time. But we’ll win. Babies will win. We overturned Roe. We can win this."
