Ohio AG, ACLU Challenge Judge’s Claims About Reproductive Rights Amendment
A Trumbull County judge claims Ohio’s reproductive rights amendment interferes with his court duties, but state officials and civil rights advocates are pushing back.
COLUMBUS, OHIO — The Ohio Attorney General’s Office and the ACLU of Ohio have filed counter-arguments against a Trumbull County judge who claims the state’s reproductive rights amendment prevents him from properly performing his judicial duties.
In a filing with the Ohio Supreme Court, the ACLU of Ohio stated that Trumbull County Family Court Judge David Engler has “no standing” as a matter of law or fact to challenge the constitutional amendment.
Judge’s Constitutional Challenge
Engler argues that the reproductive rights amendment passed by Ohio voters in 2023 interferes with his ability to adjudicate cases involving minors seeking judicial bypass for abortion procedures. Judicial bypass is a legal mechanism that allows minors to obtain court permission for an abortion without parental consent.
The process requires judges to conduct hearings, receive testimony, and evaluate the “maturity and voluntariness” of requests to bypass parental permission through the court system.
Claims of Diminished Court Function
In April, Engler submitted a request to the Ohio Supreme Court asserting that the reproductive rights amendment “is being applied to eliminate parental-consent requirements for minors and to render judicial-bypass proceedings unnecessary or unavailable,” according to court documents.
Engler, who is serving his first year as a judge on the county court, noted that Trumbull County’s juvenile court historically processed approximately two judicial bypass requests annually during the five years before he assumed the bench. Since taking his position, the court has received zero such requests, according to his affidavit filed with the Ohio Supreme Court.
The judge contends his judicial office “has been stripped of a statutory and historically exercised judicial function” due to the constitutional amendment’s implementation.
Legal Background
Ohio’s parental consent law for minors seeking abortions dates back to 1998, which simultaneously established the judicial bypass option. The legislation faced legal challenges but was ultimately upheld by a federal appeals court eight years after its enactment.
The reproductive rights amendment that Ohio voters approved in 2023 added constitutional protections for reproductive decisions, creating the current legal dispute over how existing statutes interact with the new constitutional provision.
