Shielded from Justice: Abortionists Hide Behind State Laws

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Above: Planned Parenthood’s abortion facility in Southeast Kansas has been shown to market abortion to women in Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas, and Texas.

Last week the Associated Press reported how pro-abortion “shield laws” help abortionists in other states violate pro-life laws in states like Arkansas.

In 2022 the U.S. Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade — effectively letting Arkansas prohibit abortion except to save the life of the mother. State law prohibits abortion drugs from being mailed or delivered into Arkansas. However, some states — like New York and Massachusetts — have enacted “shield laws” that protect abortionists who send abortion drugs across state lines. If an abortionist in one of these states mails abortion drugs to Arkansas, the state’s “shield law” prevents the abortionist from being prosecuted.

The A.P. writes,

Dr. Margaret Carpenter faces a felony charge in Louisiana for supplying abortion medication through the mail to a pregnant teen in that state. The patient’s mother also faces criminal charges. A Texas judge fined the same physician $100,000 after the state accused her of prescribing abortion medication for a woman near Dallas.

So far, the prosecution hasn’t progressed thanks to New York’s shield law, which has protected Carpenter from extradition to Louisiana. But other telehealth centers operating in states with similar legal protections for abortion providers are watching closely.

Abortion drugs don’t just kill unborn children. They also harm women. 

A recent study by the experts at the Ethics and Public Policy Center shows abortion drugs are at least 22 times more dangerous than the U.S. Food and Drug Administration labeling indicates.

The study — which relied on all-payer insurance claims data from 2017 to 2023 — found nearly one in nine women suffered serious health complications like sepsis, infection, and hemorrhaging as a direct result of the abortion drugs.

Abortion drugs simply should not be for sale in America — and abortionists certainly should not be free to mail them across state lines.

Last year Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin issued cease-and-desist letters to New York companies advertising abortion pills in Arkansas in violation of Arkansas law. The A.G.’s office later reported that the advertisements for abortion pills stopped as a result of their cease-and-desist. As we said at the time, that is good news — but it is clear that more work needs to be done to stop these dangerous drugs.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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The Amazing Ways Fathers Matter

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Recently, John Stonestreet at the Colson Center recorded a commentary highlighting the importance of fathers.

Stonestreet says the research is clear: “In every possible area of child development — relationally, physically, socially, educationally, even spiritually — dads bring a unique set of contributions to the lives and wellbeing of their children.”

Social science has shown us that moms and dads both matter. Various studies have concluded children from intact families with a married mom and a dad tend to be more engaged at school, have higher cognitive scores, and show greater self-control.

In 2023, the CDC released a report showing teens who lived in a two-parent household with their biological or adoptive parents were less likely to engage in sexual activity than their peers.

And fathers in particular have a tremendous impact on their children’s spiritual formation.

Our modern culture rightly celebrates mothers. We all know mothers matter. But it’s important that we not overlook the importance of fathers as well.

You can listen to Stonestreet’s entire commentary below or read it online here.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Out-of-State Attorneys Join Ten Commandments Lawsuit

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Out-of-state attorneys from atheist organizations have been given a green light to participate in a lawsuit  that would block the Ten Commandments in Arkansas’ schools and public buildings.

Arkansas law requires a copy of the national motto, “In God We Trust,” to be displayed in public schools and other public buildings. Act 573 of 2025 by Sen. Jim Dotson (R — Bentonville) and Rep. Alyssa Brown (R — Heber Springs) requires a historical copy of the Ten Commandments to be displayed as well. The measure received strong support in the Arkansas Legislature earlier this year, and the governor signed it into law on April 14. Act 573 is slated to take effect later this summer.

However, the ACLU filed a lawsuit on June 11 to block Act 573. On Monday, the federal court issued a series of procedural orders letting attorneys from the Freedom From Religion Foundation in Wisconsin and Americans United for Separation of Church and State in Washington, D.C., represent plaintiffs in the case as well.

This is not the first time these groups have opposed laws in Arkansas. The Freedom From Religion Foundation is currently part of a lawsuit to remove a monument of the Ten Commandments from the capitol lawn in Little Rock. And both organizations also have a history of complaining about religious expression in Arkansas.

Over the years, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that items that are important to our nation’s history — like the Ten Commandments or the national motto — may be honored and recognized publicly without running afoul of the First Amendment.

The Ten Commandments are one of the earliest examples of the rule of law in human history, and they have had a profound impact in shaping America’s concept of the rule of law as well.

Besides being culturally and historically significant, copies of the Ten Commandments have often appeared in artwork at courthouses and similar locations around the country.

During her testimony in support of Act 573 last April, Rep. Alyssa Brown noted that the U.S. Supreme Court uses a “longstanding history and tradition test” to decide if it is constitutional to display something like a copy of the Ten Commandments. Rep. Brown said, “The Ten Commandments without a doubt will pass this longstanding history and tradition test.”

We believe our federal courts ultimately will agree and uphold Act 573 as constitutional.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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