Mayday Health claims that a state law that makes it illegal to advertise medication abortion in the state is intended to curb its free speech rights.
(CN) – Mayday Health, a nonprofit organization that provides information about medication abortion, on Friday sued South Dakota’s governor and attorney general to block them from implementing a new law that the organization says criminalizes its work.
The non-profit organization says in a complaint filed in federal court in Sioux Falls that the law, which Gov. Larry Rhoden signed March 20, curbs his legal speech and credibly threatens him with future prosecution for engaging in speech protected by the First Amendment.
“When Governor Rhoden signed HB 1274, he issued a press release explicitly referencing Mayday’s litigation and accusing Mayday of engaging in illegal conduct,” the nonprofit claims.
State law, among other things, prohibits the advertising of abortion pills that are illegal in the state.
The lawsuit marks the latest clash between South Dakota and Mayday Health, an organization formed after the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jacksonwhich ended the constitutional right to access to abortion and returned the issue to the states.
Last year, South Dakota unsuspecting Mayday Health on signs posted at gas stations that read: “PREGNANT? YOU WON’T BE?”
that complaint followed a cease-and-desist letter sent in December by South Dakota’s Republican Attorney General, Marty Jackley, who warned the nonprofit that the state would sue if the nonprofit did not stop what he described as deceptive advertising selling abortion pills.
Abortion is prohibited in South Dakota except in specific, extenuating circumstances. State law also prohibits the administration or purchase of any medicine, drug or substance intended to induce an abortion, according to the attorney general.
Mayday responded with its own free speech lawsuit in federal court in New York. The parties settled their competing lawsuits in March, with Mayday agreeing to stop posting signs at gas stations.
In her new complaint, Mayday argues that House Bill 1274, as it applies to the organization and to a South Dakota attorney who wears one of his sweatshirts bearing information about abortion pills, violates the First Amendment. The nonprofit also argues that it cannot be held liable for links to third-party websites under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
“The US Supreme Court has made it clear that states have the right to protect life,” Jackley said in a statement. “As with the previous unsuccessful Mayday lawsuit, I will defend innocent life.”
Mayday is seeking a preliminary and permanent injunction barring the state from enforcing the law against him.
The nonprofit is represented by James D. Leach in Rapid City, South Dakota.
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