LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin's administration has started its appeal of a federal judge's ruling that struck down a state abortion law that would halt a common second-trimester procedure to end pregnancies.
The Republican governor's legal team filed a notice of appeal Wednesday with the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
U.S. District Judge Joseph H. McKinley Jr. ruled last week that the 2018 law would create a "substantial obstacle" to a woman's right to an abortion, violating constitutionally protected privacy rights. Bevin, who opposes abortion, immediately vowed to appeal.
The law takes aim at an abortion procedure known as "dilation and evacuation."
According to state statistics, the procedure was used in 537 of 3,312 abortions in Kentucky in 2016.
A consent order suspended the law's enforcement pending the outcome of last year's trial.
