SCOTUS weighs whether states can ban conversion talk therapy for minors

SCOTUS weighs whether states can ban conversion talk therapy for minors

The Supreme Court heard arguments today over whether states can ban so-called "conversion talk therapy" for minors. FOX 5 DC's Katie Barlow has the latest.

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court heard arguments today over whether states can ban so-called "conversion talk therapy" for minors.

The case comes out of Colorado, but similar laws in D.C. and Maryland could also be affected by the Court’s decision.

A majority of the justices appeared ready to strike down Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy.

The state argues that conversion therapy is ineffective and harmful to children, and lawmakers prohibited licensed therapists from counseling minors for the purpose of changing their sexual orientation or gender identity.

But Colorado therapist Kaley Chiles says the law violates her free speech and limits how she can engage with her patients.

The free speech argument 

Dig deeper:

Jonathan Scruggs, attorney for Chiles and a lawyer with the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal group challenging the ban, told the Court:

"When the government is regulating conduct, it has a lot more discretion. But we have a First Amendment, and the First Amendment protects free speech — and that’s vital, because when you can shut down free speech, you allow the government to censor views and prevent people from pursuing certain ideas and human fulfillment."

Scruggs also pushed back on the idea that this is a simple question of states’ rights.

Past rulings 

Just last year, the Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law banning gender-affirming health care for transgender minors, including hormone therapy.

In that case, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote:

"…[c]ourts may not sit as a super-legislature to weigh the wisdom of legislation…the Court reserves to the people of Tennessee the right to decide for themselves."

But opponents of Colorado’s ban say this case is different — because the law focuses entirely on speech, not medical conduct.

The state's response

Colorado’s solicitor general defended the law, saying it simply stops licensed professionals from offering a treatment the state considers both ineffective and harmful.

Haley Norris, with the Center for American Progress, added:

"It’s really important that we do not underestimate the harm that talk therapy can have on a trans or queer youth. A person in a position of authority reinforcing ideas that you are somehow wrong, or disturbed, or disgusting — all of those messages are deeply harmful."

What's next:

Both D.C. and Maryland signed onto a friend of the court brief urging the justices to uphold Colorado’s law, which mirrors their own bans on conversion therapy.

A decision is expected by late June.