politics
Federal Judge Blocks South Dakota Law Against Abortion-Pill Website Links
A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction preventing South Dakota from enforcing a law that bars linking to abortion-pill sellers. The ruling found the nonprofit site's speech is not commercial and does not qualify as speech integral to criminal conduct.
Jul 17, 5:06 PM·1m read1 source
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A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking South Dakota from enforcing a statute that prohibits linking to websites that sell abortion pills. Judge Camela Theeler ruled that the law, as applied to Mayday Health, is a content-based restriction on speech that does not fall within the commercial-speech category.
The court noted that Mayday Health is a nonprofit that provides information without receiving payment for the links and does not sell or distribute the pills.
The decision also held that the speech does not qualify as "speech integral to criminal conduct" because Mayday Health does not facilitate transfers of pills into South Dakota or intend to produce unlawful abortions. Testimony from co-founder Leo Raisner stated that the organization aims to supply accurate information and does not recruit or recommend illegal acts.
The court distinguished the case from precedents involving want ads for illegal activity, finding those rulings did not apply because Mayday Health's links are not commercial speech. The injunction prevents enforcement of the law against Mayday Health while the case proceeds.
