Federal Judge dismisses “absurd” and “outlandish” Satanic Temple challenge to Idaho Abortion Law with prejudice
Seth Ratliff
BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) — A federal court has definitively dismissed a lawsuit challenging Idaho’s abortion laws, concluding that the claims lacked legal merit and could not be corrected.
The challenge came from The Satanic Temple, a national non-theistic religious and political activist organization using the figure of Satan as a symbol of rebellion. TST’s lawsuit claimed that Idaho’s abortion restrictions, enacted following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health ruling, violated the U.S. Constitution and federal religious freedom statutes. The group argued that the restrictions constituted a “taking” of pregnant women’s wombs, amounted to slavery in violation of the Thirteenth Amendment, and infringed upon the religious freedom of its members.
Legal History and Final Ruling
U.S. District Judge David C. Nye initially dismissed the case in 2024, questioning the group’s legal standing and describing TST’s arguments as “absurd” and “outlandish.”
TST appealed this decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The Ninth Circuit agreed that TST lacked legal standing but remanded the case back to Judge Nye, asking for clarification on whether any amendment to the complaint could rectify the legal shortcomings.
On Monday, November 10th, Judge Nye issued his final response, dismissing the case with prejudice, meaning the plaintiffs cannot file the same claim again.
“No amendment could change the Court’s holding because the Court’s reasoning was based on the sheer unworkability of TST’s arguments as applied to the constitutional context,” wrote Judge Nye in his ruling. “TST’s efforts to shoehorn its disagreements with Idaho’s abortion statutes into constitutional claims rang of the classic phrase “trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.” It simply does not work.”
State Reaction
Attorney General Raúl Labrador applauded the decision, hailing it as a significant legal victory for the state.
“Idaho’s pro-life laws protect both mothers and unborn children, and this decision confirms those protections are constitutionally sound,” said Attorney General Labrador. “The Satanic Temple’s attempt to manufacture constitutional violations out of disagreement with Idaho’s values has been rejected at every level. We’ve defended Idaho’s laws through every stage of this litigation, and we will continue protecting the right of Idaho’s elected representatives to defend life.”