Facing long legal road, strict Nebraska abortion law may not be used for years, if ever

Strict new Neb. abortion law faces long legal road

LINCOLN, Neb. — Legal experts say a groundbreaking abortion law approved in Nebraska last week won’t go into effect anytime soon — if ever.

Instead, it’s expected to present a legal test that could reach the U.S. Supreme Court, which could take years.

Even ardent abortion opponents say a court injunction will likely keep the ban on abortions at and after 20 weeks of pregnancy from going into effect at its planned start date in October.

No one has stepped forward yet to challenge the law. But Dr. LeRoy Carhart, one of the nation’s few late-term abortion providers, is considered a likely candidate.

Lower courts have no precedent to support the law, which bases the new restrictions on the assertion that fetuses feel pain.