Quote:
Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield
Okay, so this TX law is so stupid I can't really believe that what I've read about it so far is accurate. But the whole fucking world is collapsing in an orgy of idiocy, so it might be true. Anyway, here goes:
1. It gives private citizens the right to sue (or prosecute?) abortion providers who they think might be violating the law.
2. This was done to avoid a constitutional challenge that would accrue from having state actors enforce the law.
3. This was also done to avoid a constitutional challenge that would accrue from allowing women to be sued (or prosecuted?) for having abortions.
Um... How are the impact (subverting the right set forth in Roe) and the motive (intentionally thwarting a federally recognized right) not paramount? The law is using citizens as proxies, and attacking doctors rather than patients, to subvert a constitutional right under Roe.
And how does anyone determine probable cause? Say some officious shitball "citizen deputy" wishes to investigate a violation. How the fuck does this nitwit get around HIPAA?
Is this thing as dumb as it looks, or am I missing some diabolical genius in its construction? Seems to me all TX has done is pass a law so fucking stupid it'll take a few novel but hardly complex arguments, and a little more time than usual, to strike it.
|
Re: HIPAA. I've never had a
tweet go viral before yesterday. That said, plaintiff's lawyers routinely pay hospital staff for PHI. Not sure how this would be different.
There are more insidious parts of it:
* Imposes costs on defense COUNSEL if they do not prevail. And they must prevail in all points or else they have not prevailed. No costs on plaintiffs.
* That applies to challenges of ANY abortion laws in Texas.
* Can sue in any county in Texas and defense cannot change venue. Which means city docs and abettors are going to be hauled across to the most podunk, pre rigged counties in the state.
* Abet or INTENDS to abet an abortion.
* There's an emergency provision, but it's written in a way that we have to fucking wait for people to start bleeding out before we can terminate.
This is a diabolical, evil law that should have been struck down with prejudice. But given the make up of the Court, it's not surprising in the least.
We're going to have a lot more women die in childbirth. We're going to have a lot more bad babies. We're going to have a lot more OBs sued. The MFM docs are going to leave en masse.
And the legislature does not give a fuck. In fact, they're gleefully drafting more abortion restrictions as I type because they clearly got the go ahead from their buddies on the Court.
Biden should federalize docs, send down a fleet and open USA Abortion Clinics down here in all of the post offices.
