California gay conversion therapy ban upheld
Source: San Jose Mercury News
A federal appeals court on Thursday upheld California's unprecedented ban on gay conversion therapy for minors, concluding it does not violate the free speech rights of counselors who support the practice or intrude on parents' right to choose such guidance for their children.
In resolving two separate legal challenges to the new law, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the arguments of a group of therapists and families who sued to block its enforcement. The three-judge panel was unanimous in upholding the statute, the first of its kind in the nation.
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It) does not violate the free speech rights of practitioners or minor patients, is neither vague nor overbroad and does not violate parents' fundamental rights," Judge Susan Graber wrote for the court.
The therapists and families sued over the ban, arguing that it violates the free speech rights of therapists to discuss gay conversion with young patients, and families argued that the law tramples on religious freedoms to seek therapy to convert their children from homosexuality. The law barred licensed mental health professionals from using the therapy on those under the age of 18.
Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_23973557/california-gay-conversion-therapy-ban-upheld
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