Federal judge temporarily blocks Mississippi’s abortion ban

JACKSON, Miss. (WCBI)- A federal judge temporarily blocks Mississippi’s heartbeat bill.

That bill was set to take effect this summer.

The heartbeat bill bans most abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected. U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves issued an order Friday, to stop the law from taking effect July 1st.

Judge Reeves heard arguments earlier this week from attorneys for the state’s only abortion clinic, who said the law would effectively eliminate all abortions in the state because cardiac activity is often first detectable around six weeks, when many women may not know they’re pregnant.

Mississippi is one of several states pushing to enact bans on early abortions.