The case against Dr. Margaret Carpenter appears to be the first instance of criminal charges against a doctor accused of prescribing abortion pills to a patient in another state.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul rejects request from Louisiana AG Liz Murrill to extradite a New York doctor who allegedly prescribed and mailed an abortion pill to a Louisiana mother.

So what are shield laws exactly, and what does the future hold for them? TIME spoke to experts to find out.

Louisiana’s attorney general is seeking to extradite a New York doctor who prescribed and sent abortion medication through the mail to a resident of the Pelican State, escalating a legal battle surrounding the doctor that could test the limits of state abortion shield laws.

The case could lead to a battle in federal court over whether states that support abortion rights can protect doctors who provide abortion services.

New York will not honor a request from Louisiana to extradite a doctor who prescribed abortion medication, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Thursday.

Louisiana is trying to extradite a New York doctor for allegedly sending abortion medication into the state. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill signed an extradition form Wednesday for Dr. Margaret Carpenter,

Gov. Kathy Hochul spoke out after Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry signed an extradition warrant for a New York doctor indicted by a Louisiana grand jury for allegedly prescribing abortion pills online.

I will not be signing an extradition order that came from the governor of Louisiana, not now, not ever,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill tweeted that her office has now signed off on the extradition request to Landry and awaits his approval.

(AP Photo/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades,File) Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] DALLAS (AP) — A New York doctor’s alleged decision to send abortion pills to patients in Texas and Louisiana has pitted the Empire State’s ...

We haven’t seen this kind of disparity in state laws around human rights since the Civil War," one legal expert told Jezebel. "What constitutes a human right in one state is a capital crime in another.