Federal Judge Blocks South Dakota Abortion Advertising Ban Against Mayday Health
A federal judge has temporarily blocked South Dakota from enforcing its abortion advertising ban against Mayday Health and attorney Nancy Turbak Berry, giving the plaintiffs an early win in a First Amendment lawsuit.
U.S. District Judge Camela C. Theeler issued a preliminary injunction Friday. The ruling does not permanently erase the law, but it stops state officials from enforcing it against the plaintiffs while the case continues. The court found that Mayday Health was likely to succeed in its challenge.
The law was signed in March and targets the distribution or advertisement of unlawful abortion services, including abortion pills, in South Dakota. Abortion is illegal in the state except when the pregnant person’s life is at risk.
Subscribe free for daily political analysis they won’t broadcast. Join 110K+ readers →
The dispute followed Mayday Health’s 2025 gas station ads directing people to information about abortion pills. Attorney General Marty Jackley accused the group of deceptive advertising and later said the lawsuit challenges a law aimed at advertising for abortion pills and out-of-state suppliers.
Mayday’s attorney Jim Leach said the state cannot ban information about abortion. Gov. Larry Rhoden said he was disappointed but emphasized that the ruling was preliminary and that he remained confident in the law.
The plain-English consequence is that South Dakota’s broader abortion ban remains in place, but the state faces a constitutional limit on how far it can go in restricting speech about abortion-pill access. The next step is continued litigation over whether the law can survive First Amendment review.
Subscribe free for daily political analysis they won’t broadcast. Join 110K+ readers →