Attorney General Charity Clark today joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in a lawsuit challenging a restrictive Tennessee law making it a crime for adults to help minors seek reproductive health care outside of Tennessee due to that state’s near-total abortion ban.
In the amicus brief, the coalition argue that Tennessee’s law not only endangers the health of minors from Tennessee but also threatens the ability of other states’ medical providers and residents to help them access lawful abortion care outside of Tennessee’s borders. Tennessee bans abortion in nearly all cases, with no exceptions for survivors of rape or incest.
In their amicus brief, the coalition urge the court of appeals to affirm the lower court’s order enjoining part of the Tennessee law and argue that states cannot prevent individuals from accessing legal abortion care in other states or sharing information about such care. Tennessee’s abortion laws, among the most restrictive in the country, have resulted in significant increases in Tennessee patients traveling to other states for timely medical care.
Joining Attorney General Clark in filing the brief are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington.
A copy of the brief is available here.
CONTACT: Amelia Vath, Outreach and Communications Coordinator, 802-828-3171