Arkansas Abortion Ban Violates State Constitution, Suit Says (1)

Four Arkansas women and a doctor sued the state Wednesday seeking to invalidate its laws banning abortion.

Two laws that prohibit the procedure except when necessary to save a person’s life during a medical emergency violate the Arkansas Constitution’s protections for equality and “inherent and inalienable rights,” including enjoying and defending life, liberty, and the pursuit of their own happiness, the complaint filed in the Arkansas Circuit Court, Pulaski County said.

The laws also are unconstitutionally vague because they threaten criminal prosecution for providers who perform abortions, but don’t define the medical emergency exception sufficiently for them to determine ...