KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Governor Gretchen Whitmer requested a temporary restraining order after the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled on Monday, August 1, that county prosecutors can enforce the state’s 1931 law that criminalizes abortion without exceptions and punishes doctors and nurses who offer reproductive health care.
In a statement, Whitmer said, “Today’s dangerous decision by the Michigan Court of Appeals clears a path for county prosecutors to use Michigan’s extreme 1931 abortion ban to prosecute doctors and nurses and jail them for doing their jobs.”
The Michigan Circuit Court granted Whitmer’s request later in the day.
Seven Michigan County Prosecutors also reaffirmed their position on abortion prosecution following Monday’s Michigan Court of Appeals Decision.
Included, Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting along with Karen D. McDonald: Oakland County Prosecutor, Carol A. Siemon: Ingham County Prosecutor, Matthew J. Wiese: Marquette County Prosecutor, Eli Savit: Washtenaw County Prosecutor, David Leyton: Genesee County Prosecutor, Kym L. Worthy: Wayne County Prosecutor, all saying that we “cannot and will not support criminalizing reproductive freedom or creating unsafe, untenable situations for health care providers and those who seek abortions in our communities.”
In a news release, they went onto to say,”We have supported Governor Whitmer’s litigation efforts to guarantee the right to reproductive freedom. And we will continue to fight, in court, to protect the right to safe and legal abortion in Michigan.”
“In the interim, however, we reiterate that we will not use our offices’ scarce resources to prosecute the exercise of reproductive freedom. Instead, as these issues continue to play out in court, we will remain focused on the prosecution of serious crimes.”
