Iowa Judge Halts 24-Hour Waiting Period for Abortion

Iowa may not enforce a new law requiring women to wait 24 hours after an ultrasound examination to have an abortion, a state trial court judge said.

The law was slated to go into effect July 1, but the Iowa District Court, Johnson County, issued a temporary restraining order Tuesday stopping its future enforcement. Judge Mitchell E. Turner found that Planned Parenthood of the Heartland was likely to win on its claims that the law violates both the Iowa and U.S. Constitutions.

The law is substantially similar to a 72-hour abortion waiting period provision the Iowa Supreme Court declared unconstitutional ...