Originally published at: Texas doctor says he gave woman abortion to defy state ban | Boing Boing
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So, can he use the $10,000 bounty to offset his upcoming legal fees?
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This man is a hero.
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Is there any limit to the number of times he can get sued? As far as I understand, the entire population of Texas could line up one by one and sue him.
This doctor and the woman are definitely brave and heroic, but I do hope they have a well-thought-out legal strategy planned out.
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I’m not a lawyer but once the first plaintiff sues him, I’d guess his lawyer would move to stay the rest of the lawsuits pending the result of the first one. If the result of the first suit is that the law is unconstitutional the rest of the lawsuits can’t succeed and if the result of the first suit is a judgment for the plaintiff then he can settle the rest (or declare bankruptcy and let the plaintiffs get in line for their penny.)
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The statute provides, among its many atrocities, that a defendant can be found guilty just once for each abortion. The bounty is for one plaintiff for one abortion. Given that, I would expect his legal counsel (the Center for Reproductive Rights) to ask any court to pause the 2nd, 3rd, etc., lawsuit until the first has run its course.
The Center for Reproductive Rights has said they will provide legal counsel. That is good- this shit is what their lawyers do full time and they will be harder to bankrupt than a single doctor or practice. The CRR is like the ACLU but only for reproductive stuff. Btw, if any of you mutants would like to chip in, here is the link to donate https://secure3.convio.net/cfrr/site/Donation2?9666.donation=form1&df_id=9666&mfc_pref=T&s_src=21RRFR0421Nav&s_subsrc=datasync&autologin=true
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I still don’t understand how anyone would have standing, but I am also very not a lawyer
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Basically, the law says they do. It is fucked up and legally speaking an incredibly bad idea. Particularly for GOPers. They hate the way certain environmental laws create standing for anyone not harmed by certain kinds of pollution to sue.
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@beschizza, I have an issue with your headline. The doctor didn’t give the woman an abortion to defy the law, he gave her an abortion to fulfil her request to do so, and by doing it, he defied the law. I also don’t think that she got an abortion to help defy the law, but because she thought that it was the best choice for herself.
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That’s a fair complaint and I’ve changed the headline.
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I suspect he has a lawyer who has found a way to booby trap the suit and will trigger it on anyone trying invoke the Texas law. Let’s hope he’s right.
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Thank you very much! I know that it was not your intention, but we shouldn’t give the impression or perpetuate the far-right talking point that abortion is something that people do on a whim or to score a political point. It is not.
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I’m assuming his confession isn’t enough - that in court, they’d have to sue him with specifics proving he actually did it (at a particular date and time, etc.). It’s good he’s forcing the issue now, so this boil of a law can finally get lanced…
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Let’s say I’m an organization that sees this as the unconstitutional end-run that it is. For the sake of argument, I’ll call myself “Schmanned Schmarenthood.”
Could I work with abortion providers to get advance notice of appointments, and immediately file suit?
Then, when I won, could I either decline to take the payment, or could I take it and give it right back to the provider?
Obviously, this only works if each procedure is subject to only one lawsuit.
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Turning over private healthcare records to some suing rando seems problematic. How does Private Joe even legally obtain access? Is just the mere suspicion enough for the courts to turn over all this confidential paperwork?
What IS the threshold involved? As a Canadian, this invasion of privacy is disturbing.
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I believe it is possible for a person to sue themselves. [I seem to remember reading stories where in order to claim insurance benefits a person had to sue a group of people that included themselves.] So John Q. Public could sue John Q. Public under this statute and owe themselves the fee if they lose.
If so an abortion provider could increase their fee for performing an abortion by the cost to file a lawsuit and have a template filing drawn up that they fill and file as part of their post-procedure paperwork.
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If the Republicans were hoping the first test case of this law would provide them with a sympathetic plaintiff suing a sinister baby-killing defendant then they might have miscalculated a bit.
The man who just stepped up to sue Dr. Braid is a convicted felon in Arkansas; a “disbarred and disgraced” former attorney currently who is currently serving a 15-year sentence for tax evasion, conspiracy and related crimes.
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What the everlovng fuck is that mess of a complaint? Why the diversion into how the good doc believes “Elohim aka God” will not punish him? Or how he treats “bastards” nicely but doesn’t want a woman to father a bastard?
Ugh. Asshole Arkansas disbarred lawyer is doing it for kicks it seems.
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