Arkansas Attorney General Joins Legal Actions Against Pro-Abortion States and Abortionists

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, September 30, 2026

Little Rock, Ark. – On Wednesday, state attorneys general for Arkansas, Louisiana, and Alabama announced an original action against the States of New York, California, and Massachusetts before the U.S. Supreme Court as well as a federal lawsuit against individuals and companies allegedly involved in distributing abortion pills nationwide. The original action asks the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down pro-abortion “shield laws” that prevent authorities in pro-life states from prosecuting abortionists in other states who send abortion drugs through the mail.

In a statement, Family Council President Jerry Cox said, “This is good news. Abortion is generally prohibited in Arkansas except to save the life of the mother, and it is against the law to send abortion drugs through the mail. But abortionists in other states are breaking the law by mailing these drugs to women in states like Arkansas. States like New York and California passed ‘shield laws’ that protect these abortionists. Arkansas needs to be able to enforce its pro-life laws, and we hope the U.S. Supreme Court will let Arkansas do exactly that.”

Cox said there is no doubt that abortion drugs are dangerous. “Last year the experts at the Ethics and Public Policy Center released the largest study ever conducted on abortion drugs. They found that abortion drugs are at least 22 times more dangerous than the drugs’ labeling indicates. Nearly 11% of women who take these drugs experience serious health complications like sepsis, infection, and life-threatening hemorrhage. Abortion drugs hurt women and kill unborn children. They should not be available at all, much less through the mail without a doctor.”

Cox said recent criminal cases also show what happens when abortionists sell abortion pills through the mail. “We’ve seen cases in Louisiana and other states where abortion drugs were ordered online and then either given to women secretly without their knowledge or consent or where women were coerced into taking the abortion drugs. Last year, the Arkansas Legislature passed Act 485 clarifying that it is a crime to secretly give a pregnant woman abortion-inducing drugs without her knowledge or consent. When abortionists send these drugs through the mail, they put women at risk and they break good state laws that are designed to protect women. We hope our federal courts will put a stop to this dangerous industry of mail-order abortion.”

Cox praised Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin for his leadership on this issue. “Attorney General Griffin has sent cease-and-desist letters to abortionists in other states who mail abortion drugs into Arkansas. His office has told abortionists again and again that they are breaking the law and that his office will take action if they do not stop. Now he is following through by suing these abortionists and the states that are protecting them. Arkansans are deeply pro-life, and our elected leaders reflect that. We appreciate Attorney General Tim Griffin’s willingness to stand for life in federal court.”

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8th Circuit Hears Oral Arguments in Ten Commandments Case

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On September 22, a three-judge panel for the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the case against an Arkansas law allowing posters of the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public schools and public buildings.

Last year, lawmakers passed Act 573 of 2025 by Sen. Jim Dotson (R — Bentonville) and Rep. Alyssa Brown (R — Heber Springs) requiring privately-funded copies of the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public schools and other public buildings in Arkansas. The measure received strong support from the state legislature.

But lawyers from the ACLU and a group of atheist organizations sued to block Act 573 in court.

The federal judge presiding over the case issued decisions claiming the Ten Commandments posters would pressure children “to observe, meditate on, venerate, and follow the State’s favored religious text, and to suppress expression of their own religious beliefs and backgrounds at school.”

However, Arkansas has appealed to the 8th Circuit. Last week, the Arkansas Attorney General’s office asked the appeals court to reverse the district court’s decision and let Arkansans place posters of the Ten Commandments in public schools and buildings as Act 573 allows.

The Attorney General’s office said the 8th Circuit should uphold Act 573, because “the district court’s analysis is flawed across the board.”

The Attorney General’s office noted that the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether displays like the Ten Commandments posters are constitutional based on their longstanding history and tradition.

Over the years, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that states are free to honor and recognize documents or symbols that are important to our nation’s history — like the Ten Commandments or the national motto. Courts have also ruled that public school students are free to study religious texts like the Bible academically.

This year the 5th Circuit has been favorable to laws placing the Ten Commandments in school classrooms in Texas and Louisiana. The judges from the 5th Circuit pointed out that “no child is required to recite the Commandments, believe them, or affirm their divine origin.”

With all of this in mind, we believe our federal courts ultimately will uphold Act 573 as constitutional.

You can listen to oral arguments over Act 573 below.

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

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What Christian Parents Should Know About Sports Betting

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The group Axis recently released a video highlighting how sports betting is harmful — especially for teenage boys.

Axis provides videos and resources designed to help parents have gospel-centered conversations with their children about faith and culture. Their recent video helps parents understand how sportsbook apps turn sports fans into gamblers and why young men are especially vulnerable.

Nationwide, sports betting is legal in 39 states — including Arkansas, where people are on track to wager nearly a billion dollars this year on sports betting alone. But a growing body of evidence shows this type of gambling is causing serious harm — especially to teens and young adults.

Studies show people who gamble on sports may be twice as likely to suffer from gambling problems. When sports gambling happens online, the rate is even higher.

Experts estimate more than half of men ages 18 – 49 now have an active sportsbook account online. While not all of these people may suffer from gambling problems, bankruptcy attorneys across the country say online sports betting is driving a surge in personal bankruptcies among young adults in their 20s and 30s.

Twenty-year-old males account for approximately 40% of calls to gambling addiction hotlines, and upwards of 20 million men are in debt or have been in debt as a result of sports betting.

In 2024, the Arkansas Problem Gambling Council announced it had seen a 22% increase in calls for help with problem gambling — driven largely by sports betting.

And a 2025 survey found one in four sports bettors worry that they cannot control their gambling. Some studies have also linked legal sports betting to increases in divorce, binge drinking, domestic violence, and violent crime.

It’s time to admit that the national experiment with sports betting has failed. The cost of sports betting isn’t just measured in dollars and cents. It’s also measured in human lives.

On the whole, most Americans do not believe sports betting has been good for society or good for sports. The NFL and sportsbooks have actually faced consumer protection lawsuits over the harm that gambling causes.

As powerful corporations try to make gambling part of everyday life, it’s important for Arkansas to protect its citizens and families from predatory gambling. Otherwise gambling addiction will simply continue wreaking havoc and hurting families in our state.

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

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