Appeals Court Lifts Block on Arkansas Abortion Restrictions

Appeals Court Lifts Block on Arkansas Abortion Restrictions
In an illustration photo, a doctor performs an ultrasound on a pregnant woman during her visit to a gynecologist. Jasper Jacobs/AFP/Getty Images
|Updated:

A federal appeals court reversed a ruling that had blocked several Arkansas laws that created barriers for women seeking abortions in the state.

Judges at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on Aug. 7 (pdf) overturned a lower court’s preliminary injunction, effectively allowing the state to enforce some of its abortion restrictions. The three-judge panel said their decision stemmed from “Chief Justice Roberts’s separate opinion in June Medical” and another prior court case from the Supreme Court.