Tag Archives: 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

Appeals Court Upholds Restrictions on Mifepristone—But Abortion Pill Remains Available for Now

“Today’s decision is a likely first step toward a massive blow to reproductive rights in the United States—and a stark reminder that our courts have been hijacked by Republican extremists,” said one abortion rights advocate.

By Brett Wilkins. Published 8-16-2023 by Common Dreams

Mifepristone The pill is one of two used in medication abortions. Photo: Robin Marty/flickr/CC

A federal appellate court on Wednesday upheld portions of a ruling restricting access to the abortion pill mifepristone, although the drug will remain available pending the outcome of ongoing litigation.

A three-judge panel of the right-wing 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that mifepristone can remain on the market, while finding that the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) 2016 move to allow the pill to be taken later in pregnancy, mailed directly to patients, and prescribed by healthcare professionals other than doctors was likely illegal.

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‘Death Sentence for Women and Families’: US Court Blocks Domestic Violence Gun Ban

“There is no real doubt that the 5th Circuit’s decision is going to lead to more abusers murdering their wives and girlfriends,” said one gun control advocate. “It will also increase mass shootings.”

By Brett Wilkins Published 2-2-2023 by Common Dreams

People participate in a March 24, 2018 “March for Our Lives” protest for gun control laws in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. (Photo: Peter Cedric Rock Smith/flickr/cc)

The right-wing 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday struck down a federal law barring people with domestic violence restraining orders from owning firearms, a ruling that gun control advocates said will cost lives.

A three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based appellate court said in its decision that the overturned law is an unconstitutional impediment to the right to bear arms. The judges based their ruling on New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, a June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down that state’s limits on carrying concealed guns in public. Continue reading →

Even Conservative US Court Knows Texas Voter ID Law is ‘Affront to Democracy’

Federal appeals court rules Texas’s voter ID law violates Voting Rights Act

By Andrea Germanos, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 7-20-2016

Court ruling described as “an enormous victory for voters in Texas.” (Photo: justgrimes/flickr/cc)

A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that Texas’s controversial voter ID law is discriminatory and violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

ThinkProgress describes it as “a stunning, unexpected decision from one of the most conservative federal appeals courts in the country,” the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Signed into law in 2011, Senate Bill 14 has been called the strictest voter ID law in the nation. As the Texas Tribune explains: “Texas is among nine states categorized as requiring ‘strict photo ID,’ and its list of acceptable forms is the shortest.” Continue reading →

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