STATE By State

• A pro-life Florida woman has filed suit against Google for restricting her access to her emails without explanation, causing her to lose 11 years’ worth of emails and documents related to her pro-life work. The Thomas More Society filed on behalf of her in Duval County, Florida. For further information, click here. 

• A Texas court issued a temporary restraining order to prevent a Texas woman’s family from discontinuing food and water for her four years after she suffered a traumatic brain injury in a car accident. The court documents indicate that the woman did not want to be taken off food and water. For further information, click here. 

• Following Gov. Gavin Newsom’s move to clear out homeless encampments throughout the State, the Catholic bishops of California have issued a statement calling for “the dignified and respectful removal of homeless encampments” and for the State to provide mental health and housing resources for those being removed. For further information, click here. 

• A suspect has been arrested for the brutal assault of two pro-lifers who were outside of an abortion clinic in Baltimore last year. The suspect has been indicted on five charges related to the assault. For further information, click here. 

• The Utah supreme court issued a decision as to whether to keep in place an injunction against the trigger-ban on abortion, deciding to hold the injunction as litigation over the law continues. The court did not decide the case on the merits, that is, whether the law is constitutional, but rather whether to hold the injunction in place. The court also indicated that there may be an issue of standing for Planned Parenthood. For further information, click here. 

• Manhattan's Planned Parenthood will no longer be performing abortions after 20 weeks due to financial issues, starting on September 3, 2024. Abortion is legal in New York up until 24 weeks. For further information, click here. 

• A New York woman is suing Planned Parenthood for failing to advise against her “gender transition.” This case is the first of its kind, where a “destransitioner” is suing a medical provider for going through with transgender surgeries. For further information, click here. 

• In Florida, a new campaign, called Vote No on 4, is picking up traction against Amendment 4, which would amend the state constitution to codify certain “rights” to abortion in law. Respect Life Ministry noted that parental consent laws regarding abortion would be nullified by the amendment. For further information, click here. 

 Federal Courts

• Texas is suing the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services for its Title X provisions that circumvent its parental consent laws regarding the provision of birth control for children. Texas attorney general Ken Paxton said that the rule “undermine[s] the Constitution and violate[s] the law.” For further information, click here. 

• Three pro-life activists were sentenced for violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act at a Tennessee abortion clinic in 2021, of which they had been convicted in April. Each received three years of probation, the first 90 days of which would be carried out via home detention. For further information, click here. 

Federal courts

• Texas is suing the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services for its Title X provisions that circumvent its parental consent laws regarding the provision of birth control for children. Texas attorney general Ken Paxton said that the rule “undermine[s] the Constitution and violate[s] the law.” For further information, click here. 

• Three pro-life activists were sentenced for violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act at a Tennessee abortion clinic in 2021, of which they had been convicted in April. Each received three years of probation, the first 90 days of which would be carried out via home detention. For further information, click here. 

national

• Two bills designed to protect children online passed in a bipartisan effort on July 30. The bills, the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), passed in a vote of 91-3. KOSA creates liability to social media companies if they negligently fail to prevent children from accessing harmful materials. COPPA 2.0 restricts data collection of minors under the age of 16. For further information, click here. 

• Workers Act of 2024 failed to advance in the Senate with the requisite votes to go forward. The vote was 48-44, with only three Republicans, Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma and Rick Scott of Florida, in favor of the Act. For further information, click here. 

Conscience/religious liberty

• The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that IHOP reached a settlement with a former employee for $40,000 after he had been fired for refusing to work on Sunday so that he could attend church. For further information, click here. 

inTERnational

•  In response to the recent decriminalization of abortion in the State of Puebla in Mexico, the Archdiocese of Puebla has announced that it will be taking certain measures to fight “the throwaway culture and the culture of death.” The Archdiocese stated that it would be offering prayers of reparation as well as promoting and supporting campaigns and ministries designed to create a culture of life in response. For further information, click here. 

• The Polish parliament narrowly rejected legislation that would have made abortion more easily accessible by a 218-215 vote with two abstentions. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had based his campaign in part on reversal of the pro-life policy of his conservative predecessors. For further information, click here. 

• In Turkey in 2023, Christians were found to be the most persecuted group in the country. Critics are saying that the Turkish justice system is failing to protect religious minorities in the country. For further information, click here. 

Of Note

•  A study showed a recent rise in the number of self-managed abortions across the United States. The total percentage of the female population who reported a self-managed abortion increased from 2.4% in 2021 to 3.3% in 2023. Significantly, the percentage use of mifepristone, the chemical abortion drug, went from 6.6% in 2021 to11.0% in 2023. To read the study, click here.  

• Investors have been sending letters to Walmart and Costco to ask them not to begin selling mifepristone at their stores. The letters contradict the claim of the New York City comptroller, who said that they would likely lose investors if they did not begin selling mifepristone in their stores. For further information, click here. 

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The National Catholic Bioethics Center website is a significant resource for bioethics information. NCBC bioethicists are also on call for consultation twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, at 215-877-2660.

Justin Corman is a guest editor at the NCBC, and a student at Ave Maria School of Law.