Quick Hit: Texas judge blocks key parts of sonogram bill

Some good news: a judge in Texas ruled that parts of a sonogram bill that was slated to pass in Texas would actually be unconstitutional, specifically forcing physicians to show a woman the sonogram against her will.

via Reuters.

The law, which had been due to go into effect on Thursday, was a major part of Republican Governor and presidential candidate Rick Perry’s agenda in this year’s Texas legislative session.

But the judge, in a victory for abortion rights activists, ruled in a preliminary injunction that there was cause to believe such a requirement was an unconstitutional burden on doctors.

“The act compels physicians to advance an ideological agenda with which they may not agree, regardless of any medical necessity, and irrespective of whether the pregnant women wish to listen,” U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks said in the ruling.

He also struck down provisions that would have called for canceling a doctor’s license or subjecting a physician to criminal penalty for failure to comply.

Holy crap some common sense! That’s a nice refreshing change when it comes to anti-choice bills threatening to become law.

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