Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot (D) says he will not prosecute families if their children receive gender-affirming care.
According to The Dallas Morning News, Creuzot joined four other district attorneys in a statement, calling Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s interpretation of the law “un-American” and an additional step in “a continued onslaught on personal freedoms.”
They explained, “We will enforce the Constitution and will not irrationally and unjustifiably interfere with medical decisions made between children, and their parents, and their medical physicians.”
Creuzot signed the letter along with Travis County DA José Garza, Bexar County DA Joe Gonzales, Fort Bend County DA Brian Middleton, and Nueces County DA Mark Gonzalez.
Dallas DA John Creuzot bucks Abbott, Paxton and declines to prosecute families for trans youth care https://t.co/6wzVWB3wxT
— Dallas Morning News (@dallasnews) February 24, 2022
Their statement comes after Abbott ordered Texas agencies to investigate gender-affirming care as child abuse, as IJR reported.
“Because the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) is responsible for protecting children from abuse, I hereby direct your agency to conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of any reported instances of these abusive procedures in the State of Texas,” Abbott wrote in a letter to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
Paxton recently declared transition care for minors child abuse.
“I’ll do everything I can to protect against those who take advantage of and harm young Texans,” Paxton said.
A White House spokesperson blasted Paxton in a statement, saying, “The Texas Attorney General’s attack on loving parents who seek medical care for their transgender children is dangerous to the health of kids in Texas and part of much larger trend of conservative officials cynically attacking LGBTQI+ youth to score political points.”
Texas is not the only state to oppose gender-affirming treatments. According to The Washington Post, Arkansas legislators were the first in the country to pass a law banning gender-affirming treatments for minors.
