New lawsuit planned over Alabama’s trans youth treatment ban

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - It’s not over. That was the message Monday by plaintiffs who abruptly withdrew their lawsuits challenging Alabama’s new law that bans treatment of transgender youth.

The Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act will make it a crime, with punishments of up to 10 years in prison, for those who provide gender-affirming medical treatment to transgender minors.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuits a week ago, just days after Gov. Kay Ivey signed Senate Bill 184 into law on April 8.

On Friday, however, both the SPLC and ACLU Alabama withdrew their suits, which were filed on behalf of the parents of two transgender teens in Jefferson and Shelby counties. A plaintiff now says they plan to file a new case in the immediate future that will include more families and more doctors.

Unless blocked by a court, the new law goes into effect on May 8.