WEATHERFORD, Texas — The American Civil Liberties Union is raising the issue of abortion rights after one Texas sheriff refused to take an inmate to an abortion clinic.

Lisa Graybill of the ACLU of Texas told The Associated Press that courts in several states have ruled that a woman's right to an abortion is protected by law. That's even if she's behind bars and the procedure is not medically necessary.

Graybill says a jail isn't required to provide an abortion or pay for it -- but cannot deny access.

Parker County Sheriff Larry Fowler tells the Fort Worth Star-Telegram he thinks residents oppose spending taxpayer money on transporting inmates to abortion clinics.

He says the woman could have posted bail and had the abortion on her own. She is no longer jailed.