Teen in immigration case has abortion

WASHINGTON — An immigrant teen in federal custody who was seeking an abortion over the Trump administration’s objections had the procedure Wednesday after a U.S. appeals court ruled in her favor, her lawyers said.

The 17-year-old had fought for a month to have an abortion, eventually leading to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which had refused her requests for an abortion.

The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on Tuesday restored a lower court’s ruling against HHS, ordering it to step aside and allow the teen the abortion.

The Trump administration did not appeal to the Supreme Court before the procedure, but advocates for the teen — referred to in court filings as Jane Doe — rushed to arrange the abortion after the ruling Tuesday.

In a statement released by the ACLU, the teen said she “came to this country to make a better life” and found out she was pregnant after entering immigration custody.

“I knew immediately what was best for me then, as I do now — that I’m not ready to be a parent,” the teensaid.

The teen illegally entered the U.S. in September and taken to an HHS facility for unaccompanied minors in South Texas. She obtained a state court order on Sept. 25 permitting an abortion. But federal officials refused to transport her or temporarily release her so that others could take her for the procedure.