317 Texas Women Harmed by Abortion Applaud Appeals Court Decision Today Permitting Immediate Enforcement of Texas' Informed Consent Law Requiring Abortionists to Show and Explain to the Mother an Ultrasound Image of Her Unborn Child Before Gaining Her Informed Consent to an Abortion

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit today vacated an August 30 preliminary injunction issued by a lower court thereby now permitting the enforcement of those provisions of Texas' informed consent law (H.B. 15) that require the abortionist before performing an elective abortion to show the mother a sonogram image of her child, provide a medical description of what that sonogram is depicting, including the fetal heartbeat and an opportunity to hear it, and the requirement the mother certify her receipt of such information before the abortion can be commenced.

Contact: Samuel B. Casey, Jubilee Campaign's Law of Life Project, 703-624-4092; Allan Parker, Justice Foundation, 210-833-1110; Gary Kreep, United States Justice Foundation, 760-788-6624

WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- Today the Jubilee Campaign's Law of Life Project, along with two other public interest legal organizations, the Justice Foundation and the United States Justice Foundation, who jointly represent 317 Texas Women Harmed by Abortion due to a lack of informed consent before their abortions, applauded the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal's 26-page Opinion and Order that vacated a lower court's preliminary injunction obtained last August by Texas' abortion industry.  The now vacated injunction (pending trial) had blocked on "vagueness" and unconstitutional "compelled speech" grounds the Texas law's requirement that an abortion provider perform and display a sonogram of the fetus, make audible the heart auscultation of the fetus for the woman to hear, and explain to her the results of each procedure and to wait 24 hours, in most cases, between these disclosures and performing the abortion. The Appeals Court, primarily relying upon the Supreme Court's Casey and Gonzales opinions, as well as the Eighth Circuit's Planned Parenthood v. Rounds decisions, concluded that the challenged provisions of the law were not vague and that the "provisions...requiring [these] disclosures and written consent are sustainable" under applicable Supreme Court precedents, "are within the State's power to regulate the practice of medicine, and therefore do not violate the First Amendment."

As "friends of the court," the 317 Texas Woman Harmed By Abortion, along with a number of other "friends of the court," filed amicus briefs providing the Appeals Court with the legal, humanitarian and common sense reasons the Court would be correct in reversing the court below and upholding the Texas law requiring every woman be given the opportunity to have all the information she needs, including a viewing and medical description of the real-time ultrasound images of her unborn child, before giving her truly voluntary and informed consent to abortion.

As Mayela Banks, one of the 317 Texas Women Hurt By Abortion, stated, "A picture is worth a thousand words, and the abortionists wanted to silence the voice of my baby."

"Now the woman can hear the sounds of her own baby's heartbeat and see the picture of her own child, not a picture from a textbook or something else.  This decision will result in a reduction in the number of abortions in Texas.  The reason for this is that women will actually see what is in their womb at the time when most abortions occur - a child with arms, feet, and legs which must be described to the woman and a beating heart which she must be allowed to hear," says Allan Parker, President of The Justice Foundation.  "This scientific evidence will refute the lies of abortionists which they have told to thousands of Texas women over the years that the contents of the uterus are 'just a mass of tissue, just a blob, or not yet a baby.'"

Sam Casey, Managing Director and General Counsel for the Jubilee Campaign's Law of Life Project said concerning the Appeals Court's decision:

"We are pleased that the Court, over the abortion industry's objections, listened to the 317 Texas Women Injured By Abortion, and the thousands of other women they represent. Our clients are glad the law can now go into immediate effect so that women, like themselves, who would otherwise not be fully informed by abortionists will at last, be given the information they need to make a fully informed decision."

One of the most important questions women want to know is "Is it a baby?"  The 317 Women Hurt By Abortion simply want women to know the truth before their abortion that it is a human being whose life is being terminated and that science shows is a child who has a heartbeat. Since most women do not have abortions until they miss a period, most abortions occur in the first four to twelve weeks (the first trimester) and many people mistakenly believe that it is just a blob of tissue.  The sonogram is a window into the womb and a picture is worth a thousand words to most women.

One of the 317 Texas Women Harmed by Abortion, Jenny Martinez, stated, "I'm so pleased with the decision! I'm thanking God because now unborn babies will have a voice and many mothers will have the opportunity to choose LIFE!"

Another of the Texas Women stated, "I, Nona Ellington, was not given any information before my abortion when I was only 15 and I want to personally thank each member of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals for deciding on behalf of the Texas Sonogram Law, so that women will see and hear the truth about their baby before having an abortion. This law will further help these women in a crisis pregnancy make a decision that will change them for the rest of their life."

Sandra Cano, the 'Mary Doe' of Doe v. Bolton, which created the health exception to Roe v. Wade, who is currently represented by Mr. Parker was quoted by Mr. Parker to be saying in response to the Appeals Court's opinion today, "If the abortionists were so sure that abortion is right, they would not be so scared to let women see it.  The sonogram shows it is a baby.  We need to help women avoid a life of pain from abortion."

The U.S. Justice Foundation's President, Gary Kreep, said. "We agree with the Court's unanimous Opinion that 'the point of informed consent laws is to allow the patient to evaluate her condition and render her best decision under difficult circumstances.  Denying her up to date medical information is more of an abuse to her ability to decide than providing the information.'"

Texas' Informed Consent Law (H.B.15), enacted by the Texas Legislature and signed by Governor Perry last May, raises the standard of care regarding informed consent for abortion to the level that a patient would expect for any other medical or surgical procedure. The Act requires the physician or a licensed sonographer to perform a sonogram on a woman considering abortion. The law also requires the physician to provide a medical description of what the images of the unborn child are depicting. Under the law, the woman has a right to see the images of the unborn child and to hear the child's heartbeat if she wishes, though House Bill 15 does not require her to do so.

Click on the following hyperlinks for further general information on the Texas' Informed Consent law (H.B. 15), the abortion industry's Amended Complaint challenging that law, filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights, United States District Court Judge Sam Sparks August 30 Decision & Order enjoining certain provisions of the law pending further court proceedings, and the State of Texas' excellent opening brief and reply briefs asking the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to vacate the preliminary injunction and let the law go into full force and effect.

The Justice Foundation, the United States Justice Foundation and the Jubilee Campaign's Law of Life Project are public interest legal organizations dedicated to legally defending the right to life and dignity of the human being from biological conception until natural death in all matters where such a defense is required. Jubilee Campaign is an international charitable organization that seeks to be a "voice for the voiceless" promoting the human rights of all, particularly women and children in countries which imprison, terrorize or otherwise oppress them.