California Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Wednesday that he is halting Louisiana’s bid to extradite a California-based doctor accused of sending abortion pills through the mail.

The decision from the Democratic governor followed a statement from Louisiana’s Republican Governor Jeff Landry, who revealed on Tuesday that he had submitted extradition paperwork to bring the doctor to face charges. While Louisiana enforces some of the nation’s toughest anti-abortion laws, California’s legislation is designed to shield abortion providers from being prosecuted for serving patients from other states.

Governor Newsom explained that extraditing the doctor would breach an executive order he implemented in 2022. This order prohibits state agencies from cooperating with out-of-state legal actions against abortion providers.

“We refuse to let radical politicians from other states interfere in California and penalize doctors for providing reproductive healthcare services,” Newsom stated emphatically. “Not today. Not ever.”

Governor Landry’s office has yet to issue a response to Newsom’s declaration.

Louisiana was pushing to extradite Remy Coeytaux, a physician in the San Francisco Bay Area. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said Tuesday Coeytaux faced a criminal charge of abortion by means of abortion-inducing drugs and risked spending up to 50 years in jail if convicted.

An email and a telephone message seeking comment from Coeytaux Tuesday on the extradition push went unanswered.