WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court declined to rule on Monday whether an Indiana couple who argued that transgender girls may be raised in their home may have lost custody of their girl.
The court rejected an appeal from the child’s parents, who had warned that “cases like theirs are likely to arise because of developing conflicts between parents and their children regarding gender identity,” without making a reply.
“With increasing frequency, governments run amok over parents’ religious views on gender identity, including removing babies from parents, favoring certain ideas in marriage custody issues, and preventing adoptions,” attorneys for Mary and Jeremy Cox of Anderson, Indiana, told the court in their appeal. “These cases are sure to proliferate.”
The parents, who are self-described devout Christians, were granted custody because they felt the teen’s severe eating disorder was urgent, according to the state.
A provision of Indiana law that is comparable to statutes in nearly every state permits government intervention in “a variety of situations where even well-intentioned parents find themselves unable to prevent serious harm.”
Indiana added that the custody dispute is no longer relevant because the teen, who was removed from the home at the age of 16, is now an adult.
IndyStar Investigations: Law prompted by IndyStar/ProPublica reporting increases scrutiny of abuse at youth centers
Mary and Jeremy Cox, self-described devout Christians, lost custody of their trans teen
The case started in 2021 when the Indiana Department of Child Services received two reports of abuse or neglect, both of which were related to the teen’s transgender identity. According to court records, one accuses the parents of verbally and emotionally abusing their child because they did not acknowledge that the teen was transgender.
A judge ordered the teen to be taken out of the parents’ care, receive treatment for the eating disorder, and participate in individual and family therapy after the hearings. The state refuted allegations of parental neglect or abuse, arguing that the teen’s eating disorder might get worse if the parents regained custody.
Because of the link between those conversations and the eating disorder, the parents were instructed not to talk about transgenderism with their child outside of therapy sessions.
The Coxes, who are identified in the court filings by their initials, said the state violated their parental rights, their free speech, and their free exercise of religion.
“M.C. and J.C. seek only to raise their children according to their religious beliefs and best judgment,” they told the court. “This case involves the state abducting a child from healthy parents.”
The Indiana Supreme Court declined to hear the case, but the Indiana Court of Appeals sided with the state.
The appeals court stated that although “the parents have the right to exercise their religious beliefs, they do not have the right to exercise them in a way that causes physical or emotional harm to the child.”
Contributing: Kristine Phillips, Indianapolis Star
Supreme Court rejects appeal from Indiana parents of trans teen originally appeared on Indianapolis Star.
