A New York judge rejected a legal challenge on Friday from the state of Texas seeking to enforce a ruling More than $100,000 civil judgment v. A doctor accused of prescribing abortion pills to a Dallas-area woman is an early test of the state’s “shield law” designed to protect providers.
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wanted a New York court to enforce a Texas civil ruling against Dr. Margaret Carpenter, who practices north of New York City in Ulster County, for allegedly prescribing abortion medications via telemedicine.
But Acting Ulster County Clerk Taylor Brock to reject to file the ruling, saying he is a state employee and must abide by New York’s shield law, which protects providers from access by other states.
New York is among the least Eight states have shield laws. Opponents of the laws say they violate the constitutional requirement that states respect the laws and legal provisions of other countries.
Judge David Gandin ruled that Brock followed New York law and granted his motion to dismiss the Texas petition. The judge, who sits in Kingston, wrote that the medical services Carpenter provided were legal in New York and that they fell “directly within the definition of ‘legally protected health activity’ under the state’s shield law.”
Brock said he was relieved.
“It seemed very clear to me that as a government employee I should not be bound by this,” he said. “Since there’s no precedent for the shield law yet, it’s a really good thing to set that precedent.”
It is not clear whether the lower court judge’s ruling will be appealed. An email seeking comment was sent to Paxton’s office.
A Texas judge in February ordered Carpenter to pay more than $100,000 in penalties for prescribing abortion pills to a woman near Dallas after she failed to appear in court. The judge also issued an injunction barring Carpenter from prescribing abortion medications to Texas residents.
The ruling in Texas was issued on the same day that New York Gov. Kathy Hochul rejected a request from Louisiana to extradite Carpenter, who was indicted in that state as charged. Description of abortion pills To a pregnant minor.
Gandin also denied a request from Democratic New York Attorney General Letitia James to intervene in the case, which could have escalated the legal battle between the states. The judge said her intervention was not justified because the constitutionality of New York’s shield law was not at issue in this case.