AUSTIN, Texas 鈥� A Texas judge on Friday blocked the state from investigating as child abuse gender confirming care for transgender youth.
District Judge Amy Clark Meachum issued a temporary injunction preventing the state from enforcing to compel the Department of Family and Protective Services to investigate.
The injunction blocking the state鈥檚 investigation of the parents of one transgender teenager. The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal sued on behalf of the parents of the 16-year-old girl over the investigation and Abbott鈥檚 directive. Meachum scheduled a trial for July 11 on the challenge to Abbott's directive.
Meachum ruled that by issuing the directive without a new law or rule, the governor and officials' actions 鈥渧iolate separation of powers by impermissibly encroaching into the legislative domain."
The lawsuit marked the first report of parents being investigated following Abbott鈥檚 directive and an earlier nonbinding legal opinion by Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton labeling certain gender-confirming treatments as 鈥渃hild abuse.鈥� DFPS said it had opened nine investigations following the directive and opinion.
The groups also represent a clinical psychologist who has said the governor鈥檚 directive forces her to choose between reporting clients to the state or losing her license and other penalties.
The governor鈥檚 directive and Paxton鈥檚 opinion go against the nation鈥檚 largest medical groups, including the American Medical Association, which have opposed Republican-backed restrictions on transgender people filed in statehouses nationwide.
Arkansas last year became the first state to pass a law prohibiting gender confirming treatments for minors, and Tennessee has approved a similar measure. A judge blocked Arkansas鈥� law, and the state has appealed that ruling.
鈥�(Abbott鈥檚 directive) singles out these families for targeted scrutiny, it stigmatizes them, invades their privacy and it interferes with the fundamental right of parents to make the decision of what鈥檚 best for their child," Paul Castillo, an attorney for the parents, said toward the end of the daylong hearing before Meachum.
Meachum's ruling came the same day that dozens of major companies 鈥� including Apple, Google, Johnson & Johnson, Meta and Microsoft 鈥� criticized the Texas directive in a full-page ad in the .
鈥淭he recent attempt to criminalize a parent for helping their transgender child access medically necessary, age-appropriate healthcare in the state of Texas goes against the values of our companies,鈥� read the ad, which used the headline 鈥淒ISCRIMINATION IS BAD FOR BUSINESS.鈥�
Meachum issued her ruling after several hours of testimony in the parents' lawsuit challenging Abbott's directive.
A child protective services supervisor testified Friday that she resigned from the department because of concerns about the directive, and said cases involving gender confirming care were being treated differently than others.
Megan Mooney, a clinical psychologist also represented by the groups in the lawsuit, said the governor's directive has caused 鈥渙utright panic鈥� among mental health professionals and families of transgender youth.
鈥淧arents are terrified that (child protective services) is going to come and question their children, or take them away,鈥� Mooney testified. 鈥淢ental health professionals are scared that we鈥檙e either violating our standards and professional codes of conduct, or in violation of the law.鈥�
Andrew Demillo, The Associated Press