Judge blocks Wyoming abortion ban on day it goes into effect

By MEAD GRUVER and LEAH WILLINGHAM
Associated Press

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A Wyoming judge temporarily blocked the state’s abortion ban on the day it took effect, siding with a firebombed women’s health clinic and others who argued the ban would harm health care workers and their patients and violate the state constitution. Wyoming’s court action puts it among several states including Kentucky, Louisiana and Utah where judges have temporarily blocked implementation of “trigger laws” while lawsuits play out. Wyoming’s law took effect briefly Wednesday, banning abortion except in cases of rape or incest or to protect the mother’s life or health. The Wyoming developments occurred as hundreds protested an abortion ban bill that advanced in the West Virginia Legislature.