WEST PALM BEACH — The U.S. District Court for Southern Florida denied a motion for preliminary injunction that two therapists sought against ordinances preventing them from practicing sexual orientation and gender identity therapy on youth.
“At its core, this case is about whether Defendants can prohibit the licensed therapists from administering SOCE therapy to minors where the available medical and subject matter literature concludes that the therapy is harmful to minors,” the court decision stated.
Therapists Robert Otto and Julie Hamilton have filed their complaints against the City of Baca Raton and County of Palm Beach. The similar ordinances in each area were passed in 2017.
While the court did not weigh in on the issue, they did determine the plaintiffs did not provide enough evidence to support the injunction.
“The Court concludes that the Plaintiffs have not met their burden of showing that the ordinances violate the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment, and thus a preliminary injunction barring their enforcement shall not issue,” Judge Robin Rosenberg wrote in the court decision.
“The Court concludes that Defendants have identified a compelling interest in protecting the safety and welfare of minors,” the court decision stated. “Defendants have pointed to and relied upon extensive credible evidence of the damage that conversion therapy inflicts.”
Judge Rosenberg also noted that the information the defendants used was from “well-known research organizations and subject matter experts.”
“The Court also concludes that Plaintiffs have not demonstrated a substantial likelihood of success on the merits as to their prior restraint and vagueness claims, so the preliminary injunction shall not issue on these grounds,” Judge Rosenberg wrote in the court decision.
“On their claim that Defendants acted outside their authority based on Florida state law, Plaintiffs have not demonstrated that an irreparable injury will occur in the absence of a preliminary injunction,” the court decision stated.
The court decision was made on Feb. 13.