No injunction issued by Halford in 'trigger law' suit, appeal denied

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JACKSON — Fourth Chancery District Judge Debbra K. Halford, serving as a specially appointed chancellor, officially rejected an 11th-hour legal request on Tuesday, July 5 to temporarily block the Magnolia State’s abortion “trigger law” from being implemented.

That “trigger law,” which was enacted in 2007 and was contingent upon the United States Supreme Court eventually overturning the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision that legalized abortions nationwide, had never been challenged in court — until last week.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s 1992 ruling in Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania vs. Casey reaffirmed a woman’s right to an abortion as granted in the 1973 Roe vs. Wade case.

On Friday, June 24, the federal high court reversed course and dismantled both previous rulings as they related to abortions.

The federal justices, in considering an abortion challenge that originated in Mississippi from 2020, ruled 6-3 to uphold the state’s Gestational Age Act — a measure that barred abortions after 15 weeks with only certain limited exceptions — and 5-4 to overrule both Roe and Casey.

The “trigger law” at the center of last week’s hearing specifies abortions will be legal in Mississippi only if the pregnant woman’s life is in danger or if a pregnancy is caused by a rape reported to law enforcement.

The law has no exception for pregnancies caused by incest.

Hillary Schneller, an attorney for the Center for Reproductive Rights that represented the Jackson Women’s Health Organization in last Tuesday’s hearing said Halford was being asked to take decisive action to block the “trigger law” from taking effect.

JWHO had sought a temporary restraining order that would have allowed the state’s lone abortion clinic to continue providing services while legal actions worked through the court system.

“People in Mississippi who need abortions right now are in a state of panic, trying to get into the clinic before it’s too late,” Schneller said.

“No one should be forced to live in fear like that.”

The main platform for the clinic’s suit cited a 1998 Mississippi Supreme Court ruling that said the state’s Constitution invokes a right to privacy that “includes an implied right to choose whether or not to have an abortion.”

However, the state — as the defendant in the suit — argued the Mississippi high court’s ruling was tied to U.S. Supreme Court decisions in 1973 and 1992 that established or protected abortion rights, but were overturned last month.

Scott Stewart, who serves as the state’s solicitor general, noted the Mississippi Constitution does not recognize a right to abortion and the state has a long history of restricting such procedures.

“In the past two weeks, the state of the law has changed dramatically,” Stewart told the court.

On Monday, June 27 in accordance with the “trigger law,” Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch served notice the measure would officially take effect on Thursday, July 7.

In response, JWHO filed suit in Hinds County Chancery Court to block such enforcement.

The appointment of Franklin County’s Halford by Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Randolph to hear the case came after four sitting Hinds County judges recused themselves from the proceedings.

In rejecting the clinic’s injunction request, Halford wrote, “The plain wording of the Mississippi Constitution does not mention abortion.”

Halford’s ruling went on to state, “This court cannot find that enjoining enforcement of properly enacted statutes in deference to a case whose constitutionality has come into such strong challenge is consistent with the public interest.”

She added that it was “more than doubtful” that the Mississippi Supreme Court would continue to uphold its 1998 ruling now that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned its own previous abortion rulings.

Beverly Pettigrew Kraft, who serves as public information officer for Mississippi’s Administrative Office of Courts, confirmed on Thursday, July 7 that an appeal of Halford’s ruling had been formally filed.

On Friday, July 8, Supreme Court Presiding Judge James W. Kitchens along with fellow Justices Dawn H. Beam and T. Kenneth Griffis issued a one-page ruling that stated the appeal had been denied.

Under Mississippi law, chancery courts have jurisdiction over disputes regarding equity, domestic matters including adoptions, custody disputes and divorces, guardianships, sanity hearings, wills and challenges to the constitutionality of state laws.