A transcript reveals that a federal judge overseeing a high-stakes case that could threaten access to medication abortion told lawyers not to publicize upcoming arguments in the lawsuit
FILE - Sarah Bentley, second from left, leads songs at an International Women's Day Sit-In for Abortion Rights in the Texas state Capitol Rotunda, Wednesday, March 8, 2023, in Austin, Texas. A federal judge in Texas overseeing a high-stakes case that could threaten access to medication abortion told lawyers not to publicize upcoming arguments in the lawsuit and that “less advertisement of this hearing is better,” according to a transcript of the meeting released Tuesday, March 14.
“And because of limited security resources and staffing, I will ask that the parties avoid further publicizing the date of the hearing,” the judge said, according to the transcript released Tuesday. “This is not a gag order but just a request for courtesy given the death threats and harassing phone calls and voicemails that this division has received.”“We want a fluid hearing with all parties being heard.
Terry Maroney, a professor at Vanderbilt University Law School who studies federal judges, said they often have security concerns in high-profile cases, but Kacsmaryk's handling of such worries was unusual. Maroney said that while Kacsmaryk noted his request to avoid publicity was not an order, most lawyers would nonetheless be inclined to obey when a judge frames a request as a matter of safety. “It functionally operates as a gag order,” she said.
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