Lubbock County, Texas, joins a group of other rural Texas counties that have voted to ban women from using their roads to seek abortions.
This comes after six cities and counties in Texas have passed abortion-related bans, out of nine that have considered them. However, this ordinance makes Lubbock the biggest jurisdiction yet to pass restrictions on abortion-related transportation.
During Monday's meeting, the Lubbock County Commissioners Court passed an ordinance banning abortion, abortion-inducing drugs and travel for abortion in the unincorporated areas of Lubbock County, declaring Lubbock County a "Sanctuary County for the Unborn."
The ordinance is part of a continued strategy by conservative activists to further restrict abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade as the ordinances are meant to bolster Texas' existing abortion ban, which allows private citizens to sue anyone who provides or "aids or abets" an abortion after six weeks of pregnancy.
The ordinance, which was introduced to the court last Wednesday, was passed by a vote of 3-0 with commissioners Terence Kovar, Jason Corley and Jordan Rackler, all Republicans, voting to pass the legislation while County Judge Curtis Parrish, Republican, and Commissioner Gilbert Flores, Democrat, abstained from the vote.
How can this possibly be enforced?
Pretty sure it's just meant to be an additional charge they can tack on once they figure out why you're not pregnant anymore.
They can't stop women from getting out-of-state abortions, but they can criminalize using Texas roads to get there, just like the feds can get you for misusing the postal service or an electronic device to commit fraud on top of the fact that you committed fraud in the first place.
Freedom to leave your state is secured by like 4 different Supreme Court cases, if they use this on someone, that will be obvious during the appeals.
Have you met this scotus?
Yes. There's Allen v. Milligan just from this year where it mandated Alabama create an additional majority-Black congressional district.
It's a shitty court, but they're not absolutely insane.
Yep, it's the slow decline and we haven't made it to feudal fiefs yet
It can't. It runs afoul of the most basic powers of the Federal Fucking Government, which is exactly the point. Abbott and his merry band of cockgargling cuntflaps are setting this up so they can send it to the Supreme Court in an attempt to get the fucking Commerce Clause overturned because that's the level of fascism we're at here in Texas.