Texas Abortion Law Gets Rehearing After Falling at Fifth Circuit

A Texas law restricting dilation-and-evacuation abortion will be reviewed by the entire Fifth Circuit, the court announced Friday, withdrawing a recent opinion in which a split three-judge panel struck the law as unconstitutional.

The court opted to rehear the case on its own motion, after a majority vote by active, non-disqualified judges.

This move vacates an Oct. 13 opinion striking abortion restrictions in Texas Senate Bill 8, which barred D&E abortions unless the doctor first ensured “fetal demise” in utero. The court called this an “invasive, additional step” that isn’t part of a typical D&E procedure. It sided with a ...