AUSTIN (KXAN) — A KXAN story that shed light on the effects of the new Texas abortion law in neighboring states was cited in a Justice Department lawsuit released Thursday.
The Justice Department sued Texas over the abortion law, arguing it was implemented “in open defiance of the Constitution.” The new law bans abortions once fetal cardiac activity is detected, which could be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy before some women know they are pregnant.
The law also allows any Texan to sue those who aid and abet in an unlawful abortion, which could include abortion providers and people who help someone seek out an abortion.
Last week, KXAN shared a story to our sister station, WKRN in Nashville, about an Oklahoma abortion clinic that’s seeing a surge in phone calls from Texas patients after the new abortion law took effect Sept. 1.
The Justice Department used that story link from WKRN’s site in its filing. The story was originally written and reported by KXAN’s own Tahera Rahman.
“One clinic in Oklahoma reported that, after S.B. 8 went into effect, the numbers of calls it received from
Texans increased from approximately three to five calls per day to between fifty and fifty-five…. The same article makes clear that the proponents of S.B. 8 are ‘aware of women crossing state lines,'” the lawsuit reads.
The Justice Department also cites stories from NY Magazine, MarketWatch and Reuters.
Watch Tahera Rahman’s full story below:
