From the Chicago Tribune:
A federal judge Thursday turned down Planned Parenthood’s request for an emergency court order that would allow it to open a new health clinic in Aurora that would provide abortions among other health-care services for women.
“We don’t know when we will be able to open,” Steve Trombley, president of Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area, said after the hearing before U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle in Chicago.
Abortion opponents battling the clinic celebrated the judge’s decision. Eric Scheidler, spokesman for the Pro-Life Action League, called the judge’s decision “a victory for life and a victory for choice.”
Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit last week requesting an injunction that would require the City of Aurora to issue it an occupancy permit. Planned Parenthood attorneys said they will return to court with an amended motion, although they did not set a date.
The city also could decide to grant an occupancy permit, making the lawsuit moot. No court date has yet been scheduled on the suit.
Planned Parenthood built a 22,000-square-foot, $7.5 million clinic at 3051 E. New York St. and planned to open it Tuesday. Last week, Aurora notified Planned Parenthood that it would not allow the opening until an investigation of how building permits were obtained for the project was completed.
Planned Parenthood has admitted to applying for permits under a different name to avoid alerting abortion opponents but insists it did nothing wrong. It contends that the city decided to withhold the agency’s permits only after getting pressure from abortion opponents.
