By Ruth Brown, Idaho Reports
Idaho U.S. Federal Judge B. Lynn Winmill issued an order Monday evening in a case stating the Attorney General cannot prosecute medical providers from referring patients out of state for abortion care.
Within hours of the order’s filing, the Attorney General’s Office filed a notice of its intent to appeal.
The lawsuit came after a March 27 opinion from Labrador, sent to Rep. Brent Crane, R-Nampa, stated Attorney General Raúl Labrador believes the abortion law in Idaho prohibits medical providers from referring a woman across state lines to access abortion services. The Attorney General’s Office later withdrew the letter.
Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky filed the lawsuit but multiple physicians, including St. Luke’s Hospital System – Idaho’s largest hospital network – filed motions in support of a request for court intervention.
The medical providers argued that despite the AG withdrawing the letter, he hadn’t disavowed its content, therefore interfering with physicians’ ability to consult with patients.
During arguments, the state claimed that the letter to Crane was private legal advice, an argument Winmill disputed in his order.
“Moreover, while the State tries to diminish the letter’s significance by framing it as akin to any attorney providing advice to any client, it cannot be ignored that this letter was issued and signed by Attorney General Labrador— Idaho’s chief legal officer—and was sent to a member of the Idaho Legislature,” Winmill wrote. “More importantly, this letter contained an expressed interpretation of Idaho’s criminal abortion statute, which is the only available written interpretation of the statute, public or not, by Attorney General Labrador. The State’s argument that the Crane Letter was not an ‘official’ statement does not negate the effect of the letter.”
Winmill also addressed medical providers’ First Amendment right to freedom of speech, noting the plaintiffs argue the letter’s interpretation of Idaho’s criminal abortion statute unconstitutionally prohibits their speech.
Winmill went on to criticize Labrador’s handling of the letter.
“As a final note, whether analyzed through the lens of standing, ripeness, or mootness, it would not have been particularly difficult for the State to definitively establish that no case or controversy exists. That is, all it would have taken is for Attorney General Labrador to denounce the Crane Letter’s interpretation or make an affirmative statement that he, or his office, will not enforce Idaho’s criminal abortion statute in such a manner. Instead, the Attorney General has strained at every juncture possible to distance himself from his previous statement without committing to a new interpretation or providing any assurances to this Court or the Medical Providers. Attorney General Labrador’s targeted silence is deafening.”
Comments on the decision
On Tuesday, Labrador’s communications director Beth Cahill issued the following statement when asked for comment:
“In his 28-year career you’d be hard pressed to find a time when Judge Winmill has ruled against Planned Parenthood, so his decision is not surprising. Judge Winmill wants to restrain a power we don’t possess. We strongly disagree with his order.”
Rebecca Gibron, CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky, issued the following statement Monday evening, referencing health care access that has been problematic since the March letter.
“While we’re glad to see this outcome, the truth is that we should never have gotten to this point. The legal opinion issued by Attorney General Labrador was the result of Rep. Crane partnering with an extremist anti-abortion group to try to game the system, and all parties are complicit in denying Idaho patients critical medical information since the letter was shared.”
Colleen Smith, participating attorney with the ACLU of Idaho, on Tuesday also issued a comment in a written statement.
“We are first and foremost grateful to receive this clarification on the law from the Court,” Smith wrote. “Our clients can now confidently return to providing their patients with the out of state referrals they were providing before the Attorney General’s March 27 letter and that they need to provide to ensure their patients receive necessary care. The Court did the right thing by affirming the rights of healthcare providers and their patients to live and practice in an already challenging environment.”
Ruth Brown | Producer
Ruth Brown grew up in South Dakota and her first job out of college was covering the South Dakota Legislature. She’s since moved on to Idaho lawmakers. Brown spent 10 years working in print journalism, including newspapers such as the Idaho Statesman and Idaho Press, where she’s covered everything from the correctional system to health care issues. She joined Idaho Reports in 2021 and looks forward to telling stories about how state policy can impact the lives of regular Idahoans.
