A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the U.S. government to allow an undocumented teenager in their custody to have an abortion, after saying she was “astounded” the Trump administration was trying to prevent the procedure.
Lawyers for Attorney General Jeff Sessions signaled to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington that the 17-year-old, who crossed the border from Mexico illegally last month, did not have a constitutional right to an elective abortion in federal custody, unless it was a medical emergency.
Chutkan, an Obama administration nominee, said the government appeared to be presenting the teenager identified in court papers as “Jane Doe” with two options: Voluntarily return to a nation she fled to procure an abortion, or carry an unwanted pregnancy to term.
“I am astounded by that position,” Chutkan said in a 40-minute hearing that was mostly consumed by a back-and-forth between the judge and Scott Stewart, a deputy assistant attorney general.
She ordered the government to transport the teenager to have the procedure — or allow her guardian to transport her — “promptly and without delay.”
