Texas AG-elect Johnson says he will stop abortion-pill suits

Texas Attorney General-elect Nathan Johnson says he will stop using state abortion laws to sue out-of-state providers who mail abortion pills to Texans, while stressing that he cannot change the law himself. The policy is an intention he has announced, not an action already taken by his office.

Johnson said he would cease using Texas abortion laws against out-of-state providers, describing such enforcement as political harassment. He also said he would not pursue the position that Texas law applies beyond its borders and would respect other states’ shield laws, which are intended to protect providers from legal action by other states. His comments concern litigation over pills mailed into Texas; they do not repeal the state’s abortion restrictions.

Under current Texas law, nearly all abortions are prohibited, with a medical exception when a pregnant person’s life is in danger. The law has no exceptions for rape or incest. A 2021 six-week ban preceded a trigger law that took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Texas later enacted the Life of the Mother Act to update medical exceptions, and the Texas Medical Board introduced training for doctors....