A Florida state law would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks. This is why a Jewish synagogue sued the state.
According to its website, Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor, a synagogue based in Boynton Beach, practices “an all-inclusive, universal, and rational approach to Judaism.” The place of worship filed a lawsuit against the state last week in Leon County Circuit Court, asserting that the new law violates members’ constitutional provisions on privacy and religious rights enshrined in Florida’s state constitution.
“In Jewish law, abortion is required if necessary to protect the health, mental or physical well-being of the woman, or for many other reasons not permitted under the act,” Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor asserts in its lawsuit. “As such, the act prohibits Jewish women from practicing their faith free of government intrusion and thus violates their privacy rights and religious freedom.”
Further, the suit argues that the new restrictions on abortions, which are currently in effect, violate the rights of women. are set to be implemented on July 1, would promote certain Christian viewpoints in violation of the Florida Constitution, which states, “There shall be no law respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting or penalizing the free expression thereof.”
Jews and other residents in the state who “do not share the religious views reflected in the act will suffer … irreparable harm,” the synagogue states.
The lawsuit further stipulates that:
This failure to preserve the separation of church & state, as with many other laws throughout history, is a threat to the Jewish family and, consequently, the Jewish people.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R. Florida) signed the bill into Law in a Kissimmee Christian Church back in April.
The new law does more than establish a strict time frame within which an individual can have an abortion. provides no exceptions for rape, incest or human trafficking. It does allow abortion in cases where a pregnancy poses a “serious risk” to a person’s life or health.
This is the second lawsuit against the state regarding the 15-week abortion law. The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida (ACLU) also filed a challenge earlier this month to the law. It’s possible that the two lawsuits could be enjoined by the court system to create one joint challenge to the state law.
The statute, sometimes known as HB 5, “ignores the real life circumstances of people who need an abortion and deliberately puts them in harm’s way,” said ACLU of Florida legal director Daniel TilleyAfter the lawsuit was filed, the plaintiffs made a statement.
