Jefferson City, Mo. - Today, Cole County Circuit Court Judge Christopher Limbaugh heard arguments in a lawsuit brought by two politicians and a special interest group in an attempt to remove Amendment 3 from the November ballot. The ACLU of Missouri intervened in the lawsuit on behalf of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom to prevent a last-ditch effort to deny Missourians their constitutional right to vote on Amendment 3, also known as the Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative, this November.
The ACLU of Missouri issued the following statement:
“In cases involving the initiative process, the Missouri Supreme Court has said that ‘nothing in our constitution so closely models participatory democracy in its pure form. Through the initiative process, those who have no access to or influence with elected representatives may take their cause directly to the people.’
“Yet, today’s lawsuit is a last-ditch effort brought by two out-of-touch politicians and a special interest group to prevent Missourians from exercising their constitutional right to direct democracy.
“All across Missouri, thousands of volunteers joined the grassroots coalition known as Missourians for Constitutional Freedom because politicians took away our right to reproductive freedom. They enforced total bans on abortion, threatened criminal prosecution, and called into question the legality of birth control, all while women across the state suffered the consequences.
“In response, our coalition of volunteers collected and submitted over 380,000 signatures from Missouri voters who believe this question ought to be before voters this November, especially because Missourians overwhelmingly support protecting reproductive freedom, including access to abortion, birth control and miscarriage care.
“These politicians and special interest groups are grasping at straws to block voters from deciding the initiative's fate, and the court should reject this desperate and undemocratic attack.”