PHOENIX (AP) — The Maricopa County sheriff says he should not have to transport pregnant inmates to abortion clinics, a policy that has drawn a court challenge from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio lets deputies ferry inmates only when the trip is medically necessary, and abortions do not fall in that category, he said. He has allowed such trips only when inmates have court orders.
“I don’t run a taxi service from jail to an abortion clinic and back,” Sheriff Arpaio said. “Where do you draw the line?”
Of the 1,000 women in county jail, about 45 are pregnant. The sheriff’s office does not keep records on how many inmates have received abortions, but a sheriff’s aide estimated the number at fewer than three a year.
The ACLU of Arizona said abortion is a constitutional right that does not disappear when a woman is sent to jail. Inmates may have to wait weeks to get a court order, they said.
The case began after deputies refused in May to transport an Estrella Jail inmate to a clinic where she had prepaid to have an abortion.
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