By Annelise Hanshaw
Circuit Court Judge Steven Ohmer denied a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit brought by the ACLU of Missouri and Lambda Legal. The lawsuit claims a ban on medical treatments to treat a condition called gender dysphoria would have “extremely serious negative health consequences.”
(Photo- State Sen. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, sits with other sponsors of bills that would ban gender-affirming care for transgender youth during a February committee hearing- Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent).
Ohmer, in his two-page order, wrote that the petitioners didn’t prove that there was a substantial threat of injury if the court didn’t intervene.
Ohmer, in his two-page order, wrote that the petitioners didn’t prove that there was a substantial threat of injury if the court didn’t intervene.
“The balance between the harm to petitioners and injury to others does not clearly weigh in favor of granting a preliminary injunction,” his order says.
Ohmer was assigned to the case when the original judge from Cole County could not schedule the necessary hearing before the law took effect. The next step in the case will be a status hearing in September.
The state brought outspoken “detransitioners,” or formerly transgender people, Zoe Hawes and Chloe Cole as some of its witnesses. Cole, a teenager from California, travels throughout the country to advocate against gender-affirming care.
The new law imposes a four-year moratorium on starting hormonal therapies, puberty blocking medications and surgical procedures for minors. It does not ban counseling for minors experiencing gender dysphoria and those who have already begun medical treatments can continue. If no future legislative action is taken, the ban on puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones will expire on Aug. 28, 2027.
Medical providers in Missouri rarely perform gender-affirming surgeries on those under 18.
Another witness for the state, Jamie Reed, stirred an investigation into her former employer, the Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
The investigation, led by Attorney General Andrew Bailey, went public in February after Reed published her story in a national media outlet.
But patients of the Transgender Center and Reed’s former coworker question her allegations. Documents from the center contradict part of Reed’s affidavit, which alleged the Transgender Center allowed children to transition with minimal oversight.
After the multi-day hearing, the ACLU of Missouri appeared confident in its argument, calling the state’s experts “not up to snuff” on Twitter.
“The law is rooted in discrimination as it would deny evidence-based, necessary and often life-saving medical care to transgender people while a non-transgender person [can] obtain the same treatment,” the ACLU of Missouri posted prior to the order.
Ohmer didn’t think stopping the law would be in the public’s interest, according to the order.
A majority of Missourians interviewed in a St. Louis University/YouGov poll responded that they were opposed to gender-affirming care banned in the new law, like surgeries and hormone replacement therapy. Respondents were split evenly on if they agreed with gender-affirming therapy, which is still allowed under the law.
The judge also questioned the science behind gender-affirming care — treatment approved by the American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians, the Endocrine Society, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Psychiatric Association.
“The science and medical evidence is conflicting and unclear,” Ohmer wrote. “Accordingly, the evidence raises more questions than answers.”
There are scientific studies of various qualities showing evidence for and against gender-affirming care. Some have been pulled from scientific journals after ethical debates and quality concerns.
Yamelsie RodrÃguez, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, accused Missouri politicians of using “ideology and junk science” to justify the new law.
“On Monday, trans and gender-expansive young Missourians will have their rights stripped away — unless a higher court intervenes,” she said. “They are terrified and furious that Missouri politicians are using ideology and junk science to deny them life-saving health care and erase their existence — and we are right alongside them.”
Aro Royston, board secretary for Missouri’s LGBTQ+ advocacy organization PROMO, said in a statement that gender-affirming care is life-saving and supported by major medical organizations.
“Not one single person who is in favor of this legislation understands how this law truly impacts the transgender community,” he said. “None of them understand the breath of relief we get to feel when we finally understand who we are and how beautiful it is to be transgender. They cannot fathom the best part of gender-affirming healthcare, which is being able to look into the mirror and see in the reflection the person you always knew yourself to be.
“Today, you have robbed us of this immense joy and our ability to thrive within this state as our authentic selves.”
Missouri isn’t the only state undergoing litigation on a gender-affirming care ban.
And 16 states, including Alabama, wrote an amicus brief asking the judge to allow the law to become effective.
“The Missouri Save Adolescents from Experimentation (SAFE) Act is a valid exercise of Missouri’s police power,” the states wrote. “Missouri, like many other States, became concerned that healthcare providers were risking the long-term health and well-being of gender dysphoric children with unproven hormonal and surgical treatments.”
Bailey took note Friday that Missouri, unlike Alabama, defeated a request to pause the law at the circuit-court level.
“Missouri is the first state in the nation to successfully defend at the trial-court level a law barring child mutilation,” he said in a statement. “I’ve said from day one as Attorney General that I will fight to ensure that Missouri is the safest state in the nation for children. This is a huge step in that direction.”
Moon said he was pleased with the ruling.
“I’m grateful for all who defended (the law), and I’m hopeful that those who are seeking help due to dissatisfaction with their identity will find the counseling they need,” he wrote to The Independent in a text message.
The parties will return to court in St. Louis September 22.
Rudi Keller of the Independent staff contributed to this report.
18 comments:
The next step in the missouri republican destruction of American society is the roll back and criminalization of gay rights. These republican dregs have already taken away a women's right to choose. Missouri is leading the nation in cruelty to minority groups and finds itself as one of the least safe and desirable states to live in the nation. These facts, along with the unyielding support and loyalty to a 4 time indicted seditious felon running for president says it all. Republicans are void of common sense and soul.
At least we can now smoke weed without impunity and carry a gun in Chucky Cheese.
Why do you want children mutilated? Trust me, nobody cares what gay adults do to each other. Leave the kids out of it.
You are a complete moron who has been brainwashed and likely comes from a broken home. You likely lack any feelings of happiness and a path to the future that sounds appealing.
Bring back families and society and common sense. Stop eating trash food and having everything in plastic…
Hey Drama Queen, scared of your own shadow, You are disappointed that kids can’t be mutilated….. so sick
Move to another state, quit messing mine up.
Medically and surgically these are permanent changes.
A child does not have the requisite mental and emotional
capability for informed consent. This is cruel to children.
We are discussing surgical castration of boys, and other
significant tissue surgical changes such as creation of
a vaginal-like opening in the perineum, requiring fluid
distention and rinsing 1-3 times daily the rest of their lives.
Surgical removal of a girl's breast tissue or 'breast buds'
eliminates the growth of breast tissue forever.
Tissue from the thigh or forearm is surgically removed to create a penile-like
tissue mound. These are experimental interventions. Europe has banned them. There is no evidence of reduced suicide attempts, rather the opposite. The judgement here is just and protects children. Also needed are extensions of the legal time limits for medical malpractice lawsuits to 30 years and upping the limits on medical and emotional and punitive dollar limits on med/mal suits for doctors and clinics performing these surgeries to 10-20 million dollars.
Hey 819, 938, and 514, I don't think 638 actually meant that you rednecks were really supposed to go to Chucky Cheese and smoke weed. Judging by the lack of depth and disorganized thought processes in your entries, you all must be earning tokens and riding high on the merry-go-round...weeeeeeeee! This also leaves me to believe you geniuses are in all likelihood, court ordered to maintain 1000 feet from schools, daycare, and places children gather. Any possibility of carrying on an intelligent discussion with you goat ropers is unlikely. By the way, you can google search the words you don't understand in this entry.
756 can cut, paste, and regurgitate the pub talking points. They sound captivating in right wing pub context. Trans issues aren't quite as you see them 756. I suggest you talk to someone who has, as a child or young adult, been thru the process and now live happy lives. Your ignorance is deeper than your ability to understand. Your hypocrisy even worse. You and your right wing brethren and possibly your misinformed church should actually take time to learn before using up all the oxygen in the room by writing lengthly outrageous diatribes.
12:16 --of course your individual interactions with friends, relatives are of importance to your opinion. I respect that.
My comments are grounded in scientific/medical studies, the Scandinavian and European experience and scientific long term comparison reports, the most recent over about 20 years and with a thousand or so patients. I have read the psychiatric literature as well studying these patients, comparing interventions vs supportive behavioral therapy. I offer my opinion in service to doing the best management for children. Adults over 21 are a different story, even though neurologic studies now show that the brain is not fully mature until age 25 and until then relies on emotions and outside influences not logic and independent self interest.
That is where I come from.
My church? should have nothing to do with this, and does not have a place in this discussion.
"emotions and outside influences not logic and independent self interest." This explains all of your detractors here. How dare you come here with facts and logic. They are here to signal their virtue and prove that they are allies.
With the possible exception of the self loathing redneck hater who would love to move to an echo chamber where they would validate that he is indeed way too smart to be living around hillbillies.
However, that would mean leaving his parents basement and getting one of them worky jobs where he would inevitably have to interact with the objects of his disdain. Feel free to Google smug douche if you aren't sure who I am referring to.
648 needs to attend an elementary school on acquiring the ability to create and communicate original thought. Your entry demonstrates that you desire to project yourself as an intellectual. Sorry, your thinly disguised facade demonstrates a different look, someone seeking significance but insecure of finding it out. I'll give you credit, you gave it the "good'ol college" try with, let's say, 3rd grade wit?
111, you make a compelling case, albeit, it must be taken in context. No doubt surgery should be extraordinary overseen and in some situations, possibly delayed to older ages. I have no dispute with your argument as it applies to minors under 18. Since I have mentioned the word context, let's look at the issue more specifically. In the last 3 years there have been under, or can be reasonably assumed, less than 1000 surgical procedures reported nationwide "mutilating" children under 18. The majority are on puberty blockers and other non surgical interventions. In that same time period 39,000 children under 18 in this country have died by gun fire from homicides,suicides, and accidents. The "woke" war on culture is nothing more than a way to distract from the republican failure to protect us, and our children, from guns, covid,and costly environmental decisions. The pubs have no plan to better America. You can stand tall on your soapbox but if you ever happen to fall off, I hope you stay grounded long enough to see the truth and decide from there.
Nice try, now go get that job.
Speaking of guns and white supremacy: another racially motivated mass shooting in florida perpetuated by a republican governor fear messaging to his ignorant bucket of deplorables.
I agee with Mary Trump, the republican party is now made up entirely of fascists and the last free and fair election in American history might possibly be in 14 months. Civil War might not be that far fetched to protect minorities and our civil rights from white supremacy and a fascist regime hellbent on destroying America.
Not a news source.....trumps niece. Knows the felon better than anyone. Including your right wing white supremist baiting faux news, and the other purveyors of hate and misinformation.
Different reader here 6:02. But really, that's all you have? What a feeble attempt to project yourself as a profound intellectual. Weak. Sorry, but with these writing skills, you would get your arse handed to you. Both 1:11 & 6:48 put more thought in their response than you did yours. Might want to sit this one out.
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