The flag of Idaho (Photo: Thinkstock)
BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Idaho has become the first state to have its so-called fetal pain law banning abortions after 20 weeks struck down by the federal courts.
The decision from U.S. District Judge Lynn Winmill was handed down Wednesday as part of a ruling that also overturns other abortion restrictions in Idaho.
The case won't govern what happens outside the western states that are part of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. But it could have an effect on a fetal pain law in Arizona, which is part of the 9th Circuit. A similar challenge has been raised in that state.
Ten states in all have enacted fetal pain laws since 2010 under the disputed premise that a fetus may be capable of feeling pain after 20 weeks. They include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska and Oklahoma.
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