A New York judge has swatted down Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attempt to enforce a $100,000 civil judgment against an out-of-state doctor accused of prescribing abortion pills to a Dallas patient, the Associated Press reports.
The legal ruling, handed down last Friday, is one of the first tests of New York State’s “shield law,” which is intended to protect doctors from being sued by states, such as Texas, that have outlawed abortion and now are aggressively pursuing legal action against out-of-state doctors who provide the procedure to its residents.
Paxton, a Republican culture-war crusader, had asked a New York court to enforce a legal decision handed down in Texas against physician Dr. Margaret Carpenter for allegedly prescribing abortion pills to a Dallas woman using telemedicine, according to the AP.
Justice David Gandin ruled that a court clerk for Ulster County, New York, the place where Carpenter practices, was correct in refusing to file the $100,000 Texas judgment against her, the AP reports. The clerk, Taylor Bruck, said he was complying with New York’s shield law when he declined.
In his opinion, Gandin wrote that Carpenter’s services are legal in New York and fall “squarely within the definition of ‘legally protected health activity’” under the state’s shield law, according to the wire service.
It’s unclear whether Paxton plans to appeal the ruling.
Roughly 20 states, including New York, have implemented shield laws to protect physicians who provide abortion services.
This summer, Texas’ Republican-controlled Texas Legislature stepped up its efforts to further interfere with residents’ access to out-of-state abortion services by passing House Bill 7, which allows private citizens to sue abortion pill providers and manufacturers.
Critics of that legislation question its constitutionality since it allows people to file suit who have no involvement in a person’s pregnancy. They also argue the measure sets up a dangerous “bounty hunter” system to target doctors trying to serve patients.
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