Republican Legislature asks court to reverse injunction in Planned Parenthood lawsuit

The Republican-led state House and Senate asked the Michigan Court of Appeals on Wednesday to overturn an injunction against the state's 1931 law banning most abortions.

The court-ordered injunction currently is the only measure keeping abortion legal in the state following the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the landmark Roe v. Wade case.

Michigan Court of Claims Judge Elizabeth Gleicher issued an injunction against the 1931 law in May following a lawsuit from Planned Parenthood of Michigan. On June 6, the Michigan Legislature, led by Republicans in both chambers, asked the court to reconsider the injunction, appealing on behalf of Attorney General Dana Nessel.

Nessel, a Democrat, had vowed not to appeal the injunction.

The initial attempt by the Legislature to intervene on Nessel's behalf was denied by the Court of Claims on June 15, according to court filings.

More:Abortion access in Michigan after Roe v. Wade overturned: What we know

The latest appeal argues Gleicher overstepped her judicial bounds in ordering the injunction, court documents show.

"The court below improperly arrogated to itself the power to decide a contentious social issue that the Michigan Constitution, properly understood, allows the people of Michigan and their chosen representatives to decide," attorneys for the Legislature wrote. "The jurisdictional and constitutional errors of the Court of Claims constitute an egregious abuse of judicial power."

A separate appeal to the injunction was filed with the Court of Appeals in May by Michigan Right to Life, the Michigan Catholic Conference and a pair of county prosecutors: Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker and Jackson County Prosecutor Jerry Jarzynka.

Abortion currently remains legal in Michigan due to the Court of Claims injunction. When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 24 to overturn Roe v. Wade, the issue of abortion returned to states to individually decide its legality. Before the court's decision last month, access to abortion had been federally protected since 1973.

Michigan's 1931 law bans all forms of abortion unless to save the life of the pregnant person. It hadn't been enforceable under Roe, and remains unenforceable while the injunction is in effect. 

Becker and Jarzynka have said they are not bound by the injunction and could now prosecute under the 1931 law if presented with appropriate cases.

Along with Planned Parenthood of Michigan's lawsuit, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also asked the Michigan Supreme Court to hear a lawsuit deciding whether the 1931 abortion ban violates the Michigan Constitution. The court agreed to hear Whitmer's case, although the governor has asked the court to accelerate its proceedings since Roe was overturned. 

Contact Arpan Lobo: alobo@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @arpanlobo. Become a subscriber today.