When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that women don't have a constitutional right to end a pregnancies, many abortion providers stopped providing the service.
The organization used to do the most abortions in the state, but they stopped doing it after the high court legalized abortion.
The legal uncertainty over a pre-statehood law that banned almost all abortions and a "personhood" law that made it a crime to provide abortion care led to the shuttering of many clinics.
The personhood law was put on hold by a federal judge on July 11. Two clinics in Phoenix and one in Tucson were reopened. Some have both the pill and surgical abortions.
A state judge in Tucson is considering the attorney general's request to lift the injunction. The injunction remained in place despite the Attorney General's announcement that the law was still in effect.
One of four clinics in the state where it provides abortions is in Tucson, Arizona. The four and three others run by the group didn't stop other care. In the fall, the organization plans to offer vasectomy services.
The decision to open just the one clinic for abortions came down to the staff being willing to take a risk and go back to providing services that some Republicans contend are illegal.
Even with the legal clarity that we have over the past couple of weeks, providers are still not comfortable. Tucson was chosen because it had providers that were comfortable with abortion care.
She said that other clinics could resume abortion care in the near future.
On August 19th, a judge in Tucson heard arguments on the Attorney General's request to lift the injunction blocking enforcement of the abortion ban. She said she will make a decision after September 20. The law was blocked because of the decision of the Supreme Court.
The Pima County Superior Court Judge should only allow the law to be enforced against people who are not doctors if other abortion restrictions are to remain relevant.
In the wake of the Supreme Court's conservative majority, there are many court battles playing out in mostly Republican states. There are legal fights about whether abortion bans can be enforced if the law is overturned.
When fetal cardiac activity can be detected, two states do not allow abortion at any point in a pregnant woman's life.
Arizona's near-total abortion ban was first enacted decades before the state was granted statehood in 1912.
The personhood law was challenged in federal court because of its vagueness. Legal rights to unborn children are given by the law. The law puts abortion providers at risk of prosecution.
Douglas Rayes refused to block it, saying an appeal to do so was brought too soon. He heard a new challenge after the case was decided, and in July he blocked enforcement because it was vague.
As the state acknowledged, what criminal laws abortion providers may be breaking is anyone's guess.
A part of the law that allowed charges to be brought against doctors who terminated pregnancies solely because of Down syndrome was blocked by Rayes. It allowed charges to be brought against anyone who helped raise money or pay for an abortion because of a genetic abnormality.
The provisions were unconstitutionally vague. The decision was thrown out by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Center for Reproductive Rights requested that Rayes block the part of the law that makes abortions illegal if they are done because of genetic problems with the fetus. There is a court date that has not been set.
The Legislature made abortions illegal after 15 weeks of pregnancies. The law takes effect on September 24. There is a conflict between the pre-statehood total abortion ban and the new law that the judge in Pima County has to consider.
While abortion is legal in Arizona, the future of the procedure is uncertain.
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