With the order by the state appellate division telling Baton Rouge Judge Donald Johnson to sign off on allowing the state's trigger law on banning abortion to go into effect, the back and forth is likely over.
Practically since the U.S. Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe versus Wade, Loyola Law Professor Dane Ciolino has been handicapping the precedings and predicted rather confidently that this is the end of abortion in the state of Louisiana.
Barring an act of judicial defiance by Judge Johnson, Loyola Law Professor Dane Ciolino explains this is likely the final act to take place in a lower court for the time being: "It was inevitable that the district judge's order was going to be set aside. It was just a matter of when. Whether it was going to be by this first circuit court of appeal or by the Louisiana Supreme Court."
Ciolino describes the state of Louisiana's chess move, which has brought us to this moment:
"The state took what's called a suspensive appeal from the district court's order which means that the order has no effect pending appeal. So… that's something that's not surprising and is routinely done on appeal. So this should come as no surprise to anyone at all."
Ciolino says the next stop is the Appeals Court:
"The typical path for cases from the district court goes through the court of appeal and then to the Louisiana Supreme Court. The Louisiana Supreme Court in it's last ruling on this issue made it clear that it wanted the normal process to run its course in these cases and that's what's happening here."
What does this all mean in the legal battle to preserve abortion rights in the state of Louisiana?
"Well it's the beginning of the end. We are going to go through the appellate process. At the end of that the abortion ban is going to go into effect and it will remain in effect and that's going to be the end of it."
