Attorney General Merrick Garland: Justice Department will "protect" abortion seekers in Texas

After the Supreme Court allowed Texas's abortion ban to come into effect, providing bounties to private "abortion hunters" who sue women and anyone who helps them get an abortion, uncertainty reigns. The Justice Department yesterday said it would "protect" women seeking abortions in Texas, but without offering details of how beyond that it would employ a federal law known as the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.

Garland said in a statement that federal prosecutors are still urgently exploring options to challenge the Texas law. He said the Justice Department would enforce the federal law "in order to protect the constitutional rights of women and other persons, including access to an abortion."

The federal law, commonly known as the FACE Act, prohibits physically obstructing or using the threat of force to intimidate or interfere with a person seeking reproductive health services. The law also prohibits damaging property at abortion clinics and other reproductive health centers.