Tue, Oct 17th, 2023 - 1:51pm
November 14, 2023 - 4:55pm | By Tom Tucker
(Fargo, ND) -- A North Dakota judge has turned down a request to temporarily halt North Dakota's ban on transgender medical services for children.
That means the ban on those services will remain in place, at least for now.
While acknowledging the legal setback, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs is expressing optimism they will eventually prevail in their legal battle
"We feel confident because there's a lot of evidence that this care is life-saving for trans kids. It's like-affirming and it provides them an ability to be themselves and enjoy their lives in a way that all North Dakotans want to," said Christina Sambor, the attorney who represents the plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed against the state.
Sambor is also North Dakota State Director for Gender Justice.
The plaintiffs include three families and a pediatrician.
They argued the ban on transgender services for children violates civil rights by preventing families from exercising choice when it comes to medical treatments.
In his ruling, Burleigh County Judge Jackson Logren asserted the plaintiffs must prove "beyond a reasonable doubt" that the ban violates the constitution.
The law was approved through House Bill 1254, which prohibits sex-reassignment surgeries for children.
The law also makes it a crime for medical professionals to prescribe hormone treatment or puberty blockers to transgender minors.
Sambor says they will continue to pursue their legal case aimed at getting the law overturned.
