Reaction after Utah Supreme Court rules trigger law pause to stay in place
Aug 1, 2024, 3:53 PM
Mary Taylor, president at Pro-life Utah, left, Sen. Daniel McCay, R-Riverton, Merrilee Boyack, chair of Abortion-Free Utah Coalition, and Gayle Ruzicka, president of the Utah Eagle Forum, speak during a press conference about the Utah Supreme Court upholding a suspension of the state’s near-total ban on abortion at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. Abortion care will remain legal in Utah, for now. (Laura Seitz, Deseret News)
(Laura Seitz, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — Pro-life and pro-choice advocates are reacting to the Utah Supreme Court’s ruling which prevents a near total abortion ban from taking effect. The court ruled that the trigger law pause would continue.
Pro-life advocates react
“I am just heartbroken,” said Pro-Life Utah President Mary Taylor, “to think that the Utah Supreme Court could [prioritize] … potential financial irreparable harm of a business whose bottom line is dependent upon the killing of pre-born babies.”
Sponsor of the trigger law Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton said he’s planning to ask state leadership to call a special session. He wants to pass a placeholder ban of most abortions after six weeks.
In terms of their strategy to restrict abortion access in the state, McCay said nothing is off the table.
“The U.S. Supreme Court has already upheld a six-week ban. We are going to look at … ways that we can take our current 18 weeks down to four weeks or six weeks,” he said.
Merilee Boyack, chairman of the Abortion Free Utah Coalition shared her disappointment with the state supreme court’s decision.
“I think that what was most appalling was that the state supreme court placed the needs of a business before the lives of thousands of pre-born children,” said Boyack.
Pro-choice advocate reacts
Chief Corporate Affairs Officer for Planned Parenthood Action Council of Utah Shireen Ghorbani, said the ruling was a “temporary win.”
“Utahns need to understand abortion is legal up to 18 weeks in Utah. That continues … because the Supreme Court today said that the injunction, which is basically a pause on that trigger ban, should continue. [The court agreed that] patients would be irreparably harmed without that injunction. Without that pause,” said Ghorbani.
Ghorbani said abortion is a common, safe procedure and an essential part of healthcare.
“It’s important for Utah to understand one in four individuals will seek abortion care in their lives. Chances are you know, someone who has had an abortion. Chances are you love someone who has had an abortion, whether or not they feel safe disclosing that to you. We would just ask people to approach this with a sense of empathy …”
