AG Hill Presses U.S. Supreme Court To Settle Indiana's Ultrasound Law

Tuesday, February 5, 2019 at 11:43 AM

The law is on-hold because of a 2017 lawsuit filed by the ACLU and Planned Parenthood.

(Indianapolis, Ind.) – The state of Indiana is pressing the Supreme Court of the United States to settle the state’s ultrasound law.

Attorney General Curtis Hill this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a lower court’s ruling on the constitutionality of an Indiana law requiring fetal ultrasounds at least 18 hours prior to abortions.

The law is on-hold because of a 2017 lawsuit filed by the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, which contented that the law placed an undue burden on women seeking abortions.

Hill noted that this week’s filing, the law essentially combines two Indiana statues that have been on the books for years. An informed-consent statute was passed in 1995, followed by a statute in 2011 that required medical staff to show the ultrasounds to women seeking abortions unless they expressed in writing that they did not wish to see them.

“The state has a compelling interest to protect fetal life and dignity,” Attorney General Hill said. “It also has an obligation to ensure that women do not feel rushed or pressured into getting an abortion. I hope the Supreme Court will establish the clear constitutionality of this vitally important legislation.”