Category: Idaho

Republican urges Supreme Court to reject and overturn same-sex marriage

This blog is originally appeared at LGBTQ Nation

Democrats labeled it “yet another example” of GOP extremists “stirring up divisive social issues to create problems where none exist.”

Republicans in Idaho’s House of Representatives are contemplating a formal statement urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse its landmark 2015 ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.

The resolution, proposed by Republican state Rep. Heather Scott, characterizes the court’s decision as an “illegitimate overreach.” Scott’s proposal calls for the restoration of the “natural definition of marriage,” despite the fact that various forms of marriage, including same-sex unions, have existed throughout history.

Rep. Heather Scott stated that the purpose of her resolution is to “affirm our state authority to regulate marriage” during a Tuesday hearing.

The 2015 Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, following decades of LGBTQ+ activism. At the time of the ruling, many states still had bans on gay marriage, despite growing public support for such unions.

The decision, made by a 5-4 vote, preceded the appointments of three conservative justices during the presidency of Donald Trump—Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have since called for a reconsideration of the Obergefell decision.

While Scott’s resolution holds no legal authority, it will be forwarded to the Supreme Court for consideration. The state committee advanced it on Tuesday, and a public hearing will be scheduled at a later date.

State House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel (D) and Senate Minority Leader Melissa Wintrow (D) dismissed Scott’s resolution as a “sad distraction,” criticizing it as another attempt by the far-right of the Republican Party to “gin up divisive social issues to create problems where none exist.” They emphasized that “big government has no business telling consenting adults who they should love.”

They added, “This resolution may be a helpful gimmick for winning in closed GOP primaries, but it should be offensive to all Idahoans who value their individual rights and freedoms and just want to live their lives without egregious government interference.”

In 2021, Rep. Scott compared Idaho’s mask mandate to Nazi Germany’s policies. Despite a federal judge ruling that Idaho’s ban on same-sex marriage violates the U.S. Constitution, the ban remains on the books. Recent polling shows that more Idahoans support same-sex marriage than oppose it.

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Transgender prisoners in Idaho regain access to hormone therapy following a significant victory in federal court

This blog originally appeared at LGBTQ NATION.

A judge has overturned a state law that prohibited gender-affirming care in prisons and other settings.

On Tuesday, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction halting an Idaho bill that banned gender-affirming care in state prisons. This decision allows incarcerated transgender individuals in Idaho to access hormone therapy once again.

In the ruling for Robinson v. Labrador, Judge David Nye of the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho wrote, “Plaintiffs’ Motion for Temporary Restraining Order, Provisional Class Certification, and Preliminary Injunction is hereby GRANTED. The court certifies the protected class of all incarcerated persons in custody of the [Idaho Department of Corrections] who are, or will be diagnosed with Gender Dysphoria, and are receiving, or would receive hormone therapy. The Court enjoins enforcement of [H.B. 668]’s prohibition on the use of state funds for purposes of providing hormone therapy as against the class while this lawsuit is pending.”

H.B. 668, the bill in question, prohibited the use of public funds for any gender-affirming procedures, including hormone therapy and surgeries. Sponsored by Republican lawmakers in the House State Affairs Committee, the bill was signed into law in March of this year by Governor Brad Little (R).

The injunction applies only to the use of public funds for gender-affirming care in prisons and does not extend to non-incarcerated transgender individuals or gender-affirming surgeries.

In his ruling, Judge Nye supported the injunction by highlighting the plaintiffs’ strong arguments regarding the importance of gender-affirming care, the societal impact of such restrictions, and the consequences for transgender people across the state. Although he acknowledged areas where the plaintiffs’ case was lacking, he ultimately determined that the evidence justified the injunction.

Initially, Nye had denied the request to make the lawsuit a class action. However, after receiving data showing that 54 incarcerated individuals were receiving gender-affirming care and 70 had been diagnosed with gender dysphoria, he changed his stance.

The lawsuit involves two transgender women in prison, Katie Heredia and Rose Mills, both diagnosed with gender dysphoria and undergoing hormone replacement therapy. Their care was put at risk due to H.B. 668. The case was expanded into a class action lawsuit representing all known transgender prisoners in Idaho, with the ACLU of Idaho arguing that the ban constituted an Eighth Amendment violation.

The defendants in the case include Attorney General Raul Labrador, Governor Brad Little, Idaho Department of Corrections (IDOC) director Josh Tewalt, IDOC Chief of Staff Bree Derrick, and Centurion Health of Idaho.

Paul Carlos Southwick, legal director for the ACLU of Idaho, stated, “We are grateful that this class action lawsuit will protect the rights of both our plaintiffs and all incarcerated people diagnosed with gender dysphoria. People who are serving time have a right to access health care, adequate food, and housing conditions while in the state’s care, and we are grateful those rights were upheld today.”

LGBTQ Nation reached out to both the ACLU of Idaho and the Attorney General’s office for comment but had not received a response by the time of publication. This article will be updated as necessary.

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