On eve of trans care restrictions, Missouri AG wants lawsuit moved to federal court
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey wants a lawsuit attempting to block his emergency restrictions on transgender care transferred to federal court on the eve of their implementation, a move that could potentially delay action in the case.
The regulations require 15 separate hourly therapy sessions over 18 months before a person can start transgender care. Missouri would be the first state to severely restrict gender-affirming care for adults, in addition to children, if the rule goes into effect. The rule has divided Republicans, with Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft and others questioning whether it will hold up in court.
Bailey, a Republican, filed court documents Tuesday seeking to move the case out of St. Louis County Circuit Court and into U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The lawsuit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and LGBTQ civil rights group Lambda Legal, alleges the regulations violate the Missouri Constitution.
Bailey says the lawsuit should be heard in federal court because it also alleges violations of the U.S. Constitution. Attorneys for the ACLU and Lambda Legal are opposing that argument in a legal filing, saying Missouri courts “should be the first to address that significant question about the scope of the state attorney general’s powers.”
The dueling court filings come ahead of a hearing in front of St. Louis County Circuit Court Judge Kristine Kerr, appointed by former Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon in 2012, set for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.
The Star’s Kacen Bayless contributed reporting
