Declaration of Dr. Bidwell in R.G. v. Koller
Declaration of Dr. Bidwell in R.G. v. Koller
Litigation
State v. Limon
A defendant convicted of a sexual offense challenged state statutory provisions which punished homosexual sodomy between adults and children far more severely than heterosexual sodomy between adults and children. The Kansas Supreme Court struck the disparate sentencing rules from the statute, holding that the statutory distinction violated equal protection under both the Federal and State Constitutions.
R.G. v. Koller
Three youths who identify as or who are perceived to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender filed a motion for preliminary injunction seeking relief from the discrimination, harassment, and verbal, physical, and sexual abuse they suffered at the hands of Hawaii Youth Correctional Facility (HYCF) staff and wards. The court partially granted the plaintiff’s preliminary injunction on due process grounds, finding that the conditions at HYCF were physically and psychologically unsafe for the plaintiffs. The court ruled that the defendants were deliberately indifferent to the health and safety of the plaintiffs in failing to provide (1) policies and training necessary to protect LGBT youth, (2) adequate staffing and supervision, (3) a functioning grievance system, and (4) a classification system to protect vulnerable youth. The court found that the practices of isolating the LGBT youths, ostensibly for their protection, and failing to protect them from physical and psychological abuse were clear violations of due process.
Doe v. Bell
A New York Superior Court ruling that a transgender youth’s Gender Identity Disorder constitutes a disability within the meaning of the State Human Rights Law. As such, the court required the New York City Administration for Children’s Services to make reasonable dress code accommodations for the youth’s disability. The petitioner was granted exemption from the dress policy and permitted to wear feminine clothing in the all-male foster care facility