Texas A.G. Ken Paxton Tries to Block Court-Approved Abortion

Attorney General Ken Paxton of Texas asked the Texas Supreme Court to reverse a lower court order allowing an abortion to proceed in spite of the state’s strict bans, in the case of a pregnant woman whose fetus has a fatal condition.

In overnight filings on Thursday, Mr. Paxton argued that the court must act quickly to overturn the order and stop the woman, Kate Cox, from obtaining an abortion.

“Each hour it remains in place is an hour that Plaintiffs believe themselves free to perform and procure an elective abortion,” filings by lawyers from Mr. Paxton’s office said. “Nothing can restore the unborn child’s life that will be lost as a result.”

The filings came hours after the judge, Maya Guerra Gamble of Travis County district court, issued a temporary restraining order on Thursday barring Mr. Paxton and others from enforcing the state’s overlapping abortion bans against Ms. Cox’s doctor, Damla Karsan, or anyone who assisted her with providing an abortion to Ms. Cox.

In granting the order, the judge found that Ms. Cox, 31, a mother of two young children living in the Dallas area, met the criteria for an exception to the state’s abortion bans. Her fetus was diagnosed with trisomy 18, a fatal condition in all but a small number of rare cases; Ms. Cox had been to the emergency room several times for pain and discharge during her pregnancy.

A spokeswoman for the Center for Reproductive Rights, which represented Ms. Cox, said they would be filing a response to Mr. Paxton with the state’s highest civil court on Friday and that a decision could come as soon as later in the day.