Yost files appeal challenging ruling on Ohio’s six-week abortion ban as unconstitutional

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is appealing a judge’s decision to strike down the state’s six-week abortion ban, one of the strictest in the country. The ban, which does not include exceptions for rape or incest, was passed in 2019 but enforcement was blocked after the US Supreme Court overturned the right to abortion in June 2022. Yost had previously stated that the ban would not exist if a constitutional amendment protecting access to abortion, Issue 1, was approved. However, he now suggests that provisions requiring an ultrasound and information distribution could still stand. The case has been sent back to the Hamilton County court, where the judge ruled in favor of overturning the ban, citing the protection of the right to abortion in the Ohio Constitution. Yost’s spokesperson stated that seeking appellate review is necessary to protect provisions in the original law that the constitutional amendment does not address. Republicans in the General Assembly have not repealed any abortion-related legislation since the amendment passed, leaving the courts to handle existing laws. The case is expected to reach the Ohio Supreme Court, which will soon have a majority of Republican justices. This ongoing legal battle highlights the continued controversy surrounding abortion rights in Ohio and the broader national debate on reproductive rights.

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