Tennessee’s abortion trafficking law that makes it illegal for adults to assist minors with obtaining an abortion out-of-state without parental consent has been temporarily blocked by a federal judge.
At the end of June, State Representative Aftyn Behn (D-Nashville-District 51) filed a lawsuit against the state challenging the new law that briefly went into effect on July 1st, 2024.
Behn, along with abortion advocate and Nashville attorney Rachel Welty, claim that wording in the law is “unconstitutionally vague” and that the legislation attacks First Amendment rights by criminalizing certain speech.
The law makes it a Class A misdemeanor – punishable by almost a year in jail – for an adult to intentionally help a minor cross state lines in order to obtain an abortion.
