A Service of UA Little Rock
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Groups Ask Judge To Block New Arkansas Abortion Restrictions

Rita Sklar ACLU American Civil Liberties Union
Michael Hibblen
/
KUAR News

Abortion rights groups are asking a federal judge to block several new abortion restrictions in Arkansas, including a ban on a commonly used second-trimester procedure.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights filed a lawsuit Tuesday to block laws that have yet to take effect but were approved by lawmakers this year.

The suit challenges a ban on a procedure known as dilation and evacuation, which abortion-rights supporters say is the safest and most common procedure used in second-trimester abortions. Similar bans are in effect in Mississippi and West Virginia but have been blocked in other states.

The suit also challenges a ban on "sex selection" abortions, arguing it creates indefinite delays for a woman seeking an abortion, and new requirements on disclosure and tissue disposal.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.