California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law on Wednesday that aims to stop other states from prosecuting doctors and pharmacists who mail abortion pills to patients in places where the procedure is banned.

California already has a law protecting doctors who provide abortions from out-of-state judgements. But that law was designed to protect doctors who treat patients from other states who travel to California.

The new law goes further by forbidding authorities from cooperating with out-of-state investigations into doctors who mail abortion pills to patients in other states. It also bans bounty hunters or bail agents from apprehending doctors, pharmacists and patients in California and transporting them to another state to stand trial for providing an abortion.

Other states, including New York and Massachusetts, have similar laws. But California’s law also bars state-based social media companies — like Facebook — from complying with out-of-state subpoenas, warrants or other requests for records to discover the identity of patients seeking abortion pills.

  • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Im pretty sure this is federally illegal/unconstitutional. You cant undermine a states law ex post facto as per section 10.

    Feel free to correct me if im wrong

    • TWeaK@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Well the offense is being committed outside of the state where the law is. You could also argue that the states banning abortions are the ones infringing on federal law and constitutional rights, because they’re trying to enforce their laws on doctors living outside their jurisdiction.

      • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        Can you get in trouble for sending a small amount of methamphetamine through the mail for someone in California to consume if you live in Oregon? Its legal in Oregon. Why should Oregon lawmakers punish the person sending the meth if its only illegal in California?

          • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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            1 year ago

            I shouldnt have used a fedrally illegal substance as an example 😀

            I suppose if this is not seen as illegal then they should also make buying prescription drugs from out of country legal. This ends war on drugs right? Right?

            • vaultdweller013@sh.itjust.works
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              1 year ago

              This is still a bad example due to how state and federal law works. A better example would be me buying an old school steel jerry can from say Idaho and having it shipped to where I live here in California. Even though the sale of such jerry cans are illegal in California ownership isnt, and I didnt buy it from an instate vendor.

              Also I dont know if old school steel jerry cans are illegal in Idaho I was just using it as an example, they are illegal to sell in California.

              • TWeaK@lemm.ee
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                1 year ago

                Yes but the example here would be someone in Cali ordering a jerry can from Idaho and the company in Idaho mailing it to Cali. Travelling to Idaho to buy a jerry can and bring it back would be fine, but in this case getting it to Cali is a part of the purchase. The purchase is being made across state lines for something that is legal in the state the transaction is made (Idaho) but illegal in the state it’s sent to (Cali). It basically boils down to whether the act of mailing is illegal, I think.

                I’m sure there must be an established precedent or something already.

                  • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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                    1 year ago

                    The main problem that i see on Lemmy is that its all bubbles and echo chambers for the hard left. You cant disagree with people without people going down your throat which sucks.

                    I apologize if me saying that you are spineless offended you, all I meant was that there needs to be more opposition or else there isnt any discourse. I think most of the shit I post on Lemmy is downvoted on but I feel like its necessary. When i see people leave I assume its because they are afraid of being in some sort of opposition but that not always be the case. Sorry if I drove you out as it was not intended, you take care.

        • TWeaK@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          I get what your saying. Obviously your example doesn’t quite work, because meth is illegal in both states and federally. What we’re looking for is something legal federally and in one state, but not the other. I’m sure there must be some established precedent for this kind of thing.

    • BOMBS@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      This law reminds me of a similar issue before the civil war. From what I remember, the issue was that northern states were forced to send people that escaped enslavement back to the south. The north was sick of that crap, stopped, and the south got upset and formed their failed cessation.

      • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        Sending people as a human right violation that they saw breaking the rules set by declaration of independence. Yes the underground railroad was breaking constitutional habeas corpus rules but they were also breaking rules of common man.

        Agin may be wrong but i remember that the north used this as the justification for harboring fugitives. This doesnt hold for this case , though, as its breaking interstate ex post facto laws. Its also breaking full faith and credit as stipulated by article IV in the constitution.

        https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/full_faith_and_credit#:~:text=Full faith and credit is,of judgments across the country.

        I have a feeling supreme court will come into play here pretty soon.

          • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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            1 year ago

            No because you are free to move between states asvyou wish. Whatever you do in a state is privy to the states laws of which they are in. Its kinda like how you can go to utah, get a polygamist marriage and if you go back to any other state you will go to jail.

            • dragonflyteaparty@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Wow, that’s so messed up. To say a person who has a residence in one state committed a crime in another state and can never go back lest they go to jail.

              • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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                1 year ago

                Im pretty sure marriage is binding so in this case if you did something that is considered illegal in another state then you get the penalty. Then again, i may be wrong. Dont downvote me just because you dont like the outcome… if I am wrong then prove me wrong.

    • NatakuNox@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      How exactly does it undermine another states law. And do those state laws count only for residents of the state? Is a pregnant woman passing through a probirth state have the same legal responsibility? What if the fetus was consived in the state? What if I mail a pill to a man in a state and he misplaced the pill?

      • PatFusty@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        After thinking about it, yeah you are right i think it would fall there. Am i wrong though like is this not applicable?

        Edit: didnt realize i linked to the same thing