- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Arshdeep, Chakravarthy help India hammer Bangladesh in T20 opener
- Lewandowski's quickfire hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
- Madueke rescues Chelsea in draw with 10-man Forest
- Beckett's belief rewarded as Bluestocking storms to Arc glory
- Trump on the stump, Harris hits airwaves in razor-edge US election
- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
Texas court temporarily halts investigation of transgender minor
A court in Texas ordered the suspension Wednesday of a probe into the parents of a transgender 16-year-old girl under a legal opinion that deemed transitioning procedures as tantamount to child abuse.
Last week, Governor Greg Abbott instructed the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to investigate instances of minors receiving "sex change procedures," which he argued "constitute child abuse under existing Texas law."
In his order, he cited such gender transitioning procedures as "reassignment surgeries that can cause sterilization, mastectomies, removals of otherwise healthy body parts, and administration of puberty-blocking drugs."
Such care to transgender minors, much like participation by transgender athletes in sports competitions, is the subject of extensive debate in the United States, where many conservative states have moved to adopt restrictive regulations.
Shortly after Abbott's directive, the mother in Wednesday's court case was suspended by her employer, the DFPS, and visited by a state investigator who sought to learn whether her child was "currently transitioning from male to female," court documents said.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Lambda Legal, an LGBTQ rights organization, filed a lawsuit on behalf of the mother. On Wednesday a district court judge in Texas issued a restraining order preventing the state from investigating the parents.
According to a press release from those two organizations, the court's ruling stops the state from acting until at least March 11, when the court will hear arguments seeking a larger block of the governor's order.
"We appreciate the relief granted to our clients, but this should never have happened and is unfathomably cruel," said Brian Klosterboer, an attorney with ACLU's Texas branch, in a statement.
"Families should not have to fear being separated because they are providing the best possible health care for their children."
US President Joe Biden, while not addressing the specific lawsuit, issued a statement Wednesday evening condemning Texas's Republican governor for a "cynical and dangerous campaign targeting transgender children and their parents."
Biden called the move by Abbott, who is in the middle of a reelection campaign, "government overreach at its worst."
"Like so many anti-transgender attacks proliferating in states across the country, the Governor’s actions callously threaten to harm children and their families just to score political points."
L.Miller--AMWN