A federal judge in Georgia on Tuesday temporarily blocked a state law that would effectively ban abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy, the latest ruling to halt efforts by conservatives to severely restrict access to abortion across the country.
The Georgia law, signed by Gov. Brian Kemp in May, would have gone into effect in January. It would prohibit most abortions once doctors can detect a fetal heartbeat, which occurs around six weeks of pregnancy. Current Georgia law restricts abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
But in a 47-page ruling on Tuesday, Judge Steve C. Jones of United States District Court in Atlanta blocked the new law as a lawsuit challenging it proceeds. He said the new law probably ran afoul of women’s right to an abortion, which he said was guaranteed by the Constitution until about 24 weeks into pregnancy.
“Under no circumstances whatsoever may a state prohibit or ban abortions at any point prior to viability,” Judge Jones wrote.
The case mirrors battles over abortion that are unfolding in several other states. Conservatives believe the appointment of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court means the court is more likely to ultimately weaken or challenge the 1973 decision Roe v. Wade, which enshrined the right to an abortion.
Republican legislators in several states have passed a series of restrictive abortion laws that challenge the Supreme Court precedent. And at the lower court level, judge after judge, citing Roe and other cases, has ruled against the laws.
In July, a federal judge blocked three tough, new abortion restrictions from going into effect in Arkansas. Two months earlier, a judge blocked a Mississippi law that, like the Georgia law, would effectively ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.
Sean J. Young, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia, said it was “unsurprising that courts all over the country have struck down abortion bans as unconstitutional.”
Groups including the A.C.L.U. and Planned Parenthood filed the lawsuit in June.
Mr. Young called Judge Jones’s ruling a “tremendous victory.”
“This case has been pretty straightforward from the beginning,” he said. “Banning abortion is unconstitutional.”
Candice Broce, a spokesman for Governor Kemp, a Republican, said in a statement on Tuesday that the state was “reviewing Judge Jones’ decision.”
“Despite today’s outcome, we remain confident in our position,” Ms. Broce said. “We will continue to fight for the unborn and work to ensure that all Georgians have the opportunity to live, grow, and prosper.”
Tensions around abortion were especially high in Georgia when the bill, needing 91 votes to pass, was approved by a vote of 92 to 78. The state has faced a shortage of obstetricians and has one of the highest maternal death rates in the country.
