Florida Supreme Court won't temporarily stop 15-week abortion law

The Florida Supreme Court on Monday rejected requests to halt a law that prevents abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

Justices, in a 4-1 decision, turned down a motion by seven abortion clinics and a doctor for a stay of a ruling by the 1st District Court of Appeal that kept the law in place. The one-paragraph decision did not detail the Supreme Court’s reasoning.

At a minimum, the decision will keep the law in effect until the Supreme Court can rule on underlying issues in the case. Justices Charles Canady, Ricky Polston, John Couriel and Jamie Grosshans were in the majority, while Justice Jorge Labarga wrote a short dissent.

“In view of this (Supreme) Court’s longstanding precedent, I conclude that the petitioners have met the exacting burden required for this Court to stay the First District Court of Appeal’s decision pending review in this Court,” Labarga wrote.