On September 12, 2024, Burleigh County District Judge Bruce Romanick ruled that the state's abortion law violates North Dakota Constitution. He said the ban violated numerous constitutional guarantees, including the rights to liberty, to pursue and obtain safety, and happiness, as well as the State Constitution’s due process protections because it was too vague in how it defined exceptions to the ban.

In response to the decision, Bishop Folda said, “The ruling is both appalling and heartbreaking, but does not allow us to give up our efforts to build a culture of life.” Bishop Folda and Bishop Kagan, the bishops of the two dioceses in North Dakota, issued a statement through the North Dakota Catholic Conference.

Bishop Folda asks all the faithful to pray for the protection of all human life, from conception until natural death.