A federal judge has extended his order that prevents the Florida Department of Health from strong-arming TV broadcasters airing an ad supporting an abortion-rights amendment.
This decision came after the FDH sent cease-and-desist letters threatening criminal charges for spreading misinformation against stations broadcasting a commercial from the group Floridians Protecting Freedom.
Judge Mark Walker of the U.S. District in Tallahassee enacted the temporary order on October 17. The extension continues for another 14 days or until Walker decides whether to maintain the ban throughout the lawsuit initiated by the group, extending beyond Election Day.
The amendment in question, Amendment 4, aims to prevent government meddling with abortion until viability, typically around 24 weeks. It requires at least 60% voter approval to pass.
During a recent hearing, Walker expressed skepticism toward the DeSantis administration’s argument that the First Amendment doesn’t apply to the ad.
The commercial focused on a Tampa resident named Caroline, who asserts that Florida’s abortion restrictions could have stopped her from accessing the procedure needed when she began chemotherapy for brain cancer.
In addition to keeping he government from being able to interfere with a pregnancy prior to it’s viability, the amendment will place importance on protecting the pregnant woman’s life.
The FDH’s attorney, Brian Barness described the ad as “unambiguously false,” citing the legal exception to save the mother’s life in the state’s abortion ban after six weeks of gestation.
Ben Stafford, representing the plaintiffs, defended the ad, suggesting that Caroline’s assertion wasn’t easily verifiable. “At worst, it’s debatable,” Stafford remarked.
He submitted evidence, including a declaration from Caroline’s doctor stating she wouldn’t have performed the abortion under the six-week ban because the procedure was not life saving, as her patient was still being treated for the disease.
On Tuesday, DeSantis pushed back on the notion, pointing out, “Florida has exceptions, of course, for the health of the mother, life of the mother, incest, victims of human trafficking, all of that stuff.”
He also noted that the language in the amendment does not properly define what makes a pregnancy viable.
“It talks about no restrictions, no regulations, nothing on abortion until what they say is ‘viability,’ but do they define viability? No,” DeSantis remarked during a press conference.
