AG Paxton Leads 11-State Coalition in Brief to Defend Life and Federal Immigration Laws

“An unlawfully-present alien with no substantial ties to this country has no constitutional right to abortion on demand,” Attorney General Paxton said.

AUSTIN – Leading an 11-state coalition, Attorney General Ken Paxton today filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in support of the federal government’s right to protect unborn life in the case of an unlawfully present minor alien who seeks an abortion.

U.S. immigration officials detained the minor in a shelter funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The unlawfully-present minor alien, identified only as “Jane Moe,” was apprehended after attempting to enter the U.S. illegally. She is pregnant and has filed an emergency application asking the court to order the federal government to release her from custody for the purpose of obtaining an abortion. She’s the fourth minor to come forward as part of an American Civil Liberties Union class action lawsuit arguing that unlawfully present minor aliens have the same access to abortion as anyone else in the U.S.

“An unlawfully-present alien with no substantial ties to this country has no constitutional right to abortion on demand,” Attorney General Paxton said. “If ‘Moe’ prevails in this case, it will contradict U.S. Supreme Court precedent and create a right to abortion for anyone who enters the U.S. illegally, no matter how briefly. Texas has a legitimate and substantial interest in preserving and promoting fetal life. Texas must not become a sanctuary state for abortions.”

Joining Texas on the amicus brief are the attorneys general of Arkansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, West Virginia, and the governor of Kentucky.

View the amicus brief here:  http://bit.ly/2AWpyo1