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Reaction To the Indiana Abortion Law Ruling

Ken Falk, of ACLU of Indiana, and Betty Cockrum, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky, during a press conference Thursday.
Brandon Smith/IPBS
Ken Falk, of ACLU of Indiana, and Betty Cockrum, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky, during a press conference Thursday.

INDIANAPOLIS -- The head of Indiana’s Planned Parenthood calls a federal judge’s block of the state’s new anti-abortion law a cause to celebrate. 

The Indiana law would have banned abortions performed solely because of a fetus’ sex, race or potential disability. It also would have required hospitals and clinics to either bury or cremate fetal remains.

ACLU of Indiana legal director Ken Falk, who represented Planned Parenthood in its lawsuit, says if the state appeals the judge’s decision, he’s confident moving forward.

“What the state of Indiana has attempted to do here…grossly flies in the face of existing law," Falk says.

Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky CEO Betty Cockrum says it’s been gratifying to see the support for her organization’s fight against the law.

“Happy Independence Day to the women of the state of Indiana," Cockrum says. "We get to celebrate our freedoms.”

In a statement, Indiana Right to Life says the ruling denies the civil rights of the unborn. A spokesperson for Gov. Mike Pence says Pence is disappointed.

Brandon Smith has covered the Statehouse for Indiana Public Broadcasting for more than a decade, spanning three governors and a dozen legislative sessions. He's also the host of Indiana Week in Review, a weekly political and policy discussion program seen and heard across the state.
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