NEW ORLEANS — Judges temporarily blocked abortion bans Monday in Louisiana and Utah, while a federal court in South Carolina said a law restricting the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy would take effect there immediately as the battle over the fall of Roe v. Wade shifted from the nation's highest court to courthouses around the country.
The U.S. Supreme Court's decision Friday to end constitutional protection for abortion opened the gates for a wave of litigation, as one side sought quickly to put statewide bans into effect and the other tried to stop or at least delay such measures.
