2 weeks Ago
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Exactly two years after protesters were arrested at the Montana State Capitol following a transgender lawmaker’s remarks against a proposed ban on gender-affirming care for minors, lawyers debated the veracity of the bill-turned-law that started it all in court Thursday. Senate Bill 99 prohibits puberty blockers, hormonal therapies, surgeries and a slew of other medical treatments from being used to help a trans youth transition from their sex assigned at birth. Montana’s 2023 GOP-supermajority Legislature passed SB 99, sponsored by Sen.
John Fuller, R-Kalispell, in the home stretch of the legislative session. It was signed into law by Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte only days later.
Sen. John Fuller, R-Kalispell, listens to testimony in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Jan. 27 in the state Capitol.
THOM BRIDGE, Independent Record Plaintiffs, represented by the ACLU of Montana and two out-of-state law firms, filed a lawsuit against the state, naming as defendants Gianforte, Attorney General Austin Knudsen, the Montana Board of Medical Examiners, the Montana Board of Nursing and the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services plus its director Charlie Brereton. Stevensville man killed in ATV rollover accident Saturday 'You can always come home': Bitterroot family preserves nine generations of ranch land Candidate Q&A: Hamilton school trustee candidates Candidate Q&A: Florence School Board candidates Bitterroot school board candidates finalized for upcoming May 6 election Ravalli County officials file oaths of candidacy for November election Man charged with child-sex crimes after Star's investigation of Tucson church Hamilton woman dies in Teton County crash near Fairfield, MHP says Five killed in crashes across Montana over Easter weekend 'We will find a way': Bitterroot food pantries prepare for loss in USDA funding New T-Mobile cell tower in Hamilton met with opposition, discussion extended One year, nearly 900 investigations: Tech-based child sex abuse on rise in Montana Judge dismisses injunction request for Florence four-day school week Local groups receive funding from Darby Town Endowment fund Grizzlies roam edges of the Bitterroot Ecosystem as feds work on management plan Missoula District Court Judge Jason Marks temporarily blocked the law from going into effect in September 2023. At the time, Marks determined that SB 99 likely violates foundational constitutional rights to privacy and to equal protection by applying the law differently to trans people.
The Missoula judge is now tasked with determining whether to permanently strike down SB 99 without a trial or to send the case to be heard by a jury. It's not clear how long he will take before issuing the decision. Judge extends temporary block on Montana trans 'bathroom bill' During Thursday’s oral argument, the ACLU’s Alex Rate asked for what’s called a summary judgement, which would resolve the case without a trial.
Michael Noonan, an assistant attorney general in Knudsen’s office, petitioned the judge to move the case along to trial, claiming there were disputed facts that a jury needed to resolve. Both sides agreed on a basic starting point — gender dysphoria is real. The parents, trans teens and health care professional plaintiffs allege that barring access to treatment for the condition violates their rights.
By contrast, the state asserts that minors can’t be expected to understand the long-term implications of these treatments, even when done with legally-mandated parental permission. The only way to protect young, vulnerable children from life-altering procedures, the state argues, is by making the care inaccessible. “The issue, though, with this specific treatment is whether a child or an adolescent .
.. is capable of providing informed consent, acknowledging the full risk of harms,” Noonan said, listing things like infertility and "physical disfigurement" as examples of consequences.
“The answer is ‘no’ on this specific treatment." The medical care prohibited by SB 99 is what the American Medical Association says are some of the best practices for people diagnosed with gender dysphoria and should be considered as part of a treatment plan overseen by doctors. 'Exhausting' and 'frustrating': Trans advocates grapple with 2025 Montana legislative session Phoebe Cross is a Bozeman high-schooler who struggled with severe depression and anxiety — and even a suicide attempt — because of his gender dysphoria.
Though he had started taking steps to socially transition, it wasn’t until he began hormone replacement therapy under the guidance of a team of medical professionals that he started to feel “much better just existing.” Noonan, the state's attorney, over and over infused doubt into the capacity of trans minors and their parents to make informed decisions about their choices to pursue gender-affirming care. Marks questioned this argument: “If those are the problems, why was there not a narrowly tailored solution to address those problems versus flat out banning the care which is likely appropriate for some people?” The judge also flagged what he described as inconsistency between this single law and the rest of what’s on the books, saying “a child can give informed consent in all areas except this one.
” A scene from the Trans Day of Visibility rally on the steps of the Montana State Capitol on March 31. THOM BRIDGE, Independent Record When asking for SB 99 to be overturned, Rate, the plaintiffs’ attorney, harkened back to the long list of past cases in the state regarding abortion protections that have been resolved in that way. The parallels are “eerily similar,” he said, because they both involve possible privacy rights and often gin up laws that are sweeping rather than specific.
Additionally, SB 99 and a number of reproductive rights-related laws that have since been struck by the courts involve medical protocols that are otherwise considered safe and medically necessary, unless it’s in the context of trans kids or abortion access. “This case ..
. demonstrates one thing,” Rate said. “Health care decisions should be made between an individual and their health care provider.
Not by the Legislature. Not be the executive. Not by the courts.
” Author email.
