Christian counselor asks Supreme Court to block Colorado’s 'gay conversion therapy' ban
A Christian counselor is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to block enforcement of a Colorado law that regulates what licensed professionals can say while discussing unwanted same-sex attractions with clients, arguing that the state government censors speech it disfavors.
The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal group, filed a petition for a writ of certiorari last Friday to the Supreme Court on behalf of Kaley Chiles in the hopes of overturning a circuit court decision against her.
"Chiles believes that people flourish when they live consistently with God's design, including their biological sex," reads the petition.
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"Many of her clients seek her counsel precisely because they believe that their faith and their relationship with God establishes the foundation upon which to understand their identity and desires. But Colorado bans these consensual conversations based on the viewpoints they express."
The petition urges the Supreme Court to "take this opportunity to clarify that the First Amendment applies in the counseling room."
Defendants named in the case include Patty Salazar, executive director of the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies; Reina Sbarbaro-Gordon, program director of the State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners and the State Board of Addiction Counselor Examiners; members of the State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners, and members of the State Board of Addiction Counselor Examiners.
In 2019, Colorado passed the Minor Conversion Therapy Law, which prohibits the practice of sexual orientation change efforts therapy, commonly referred to by critics as "gay conversion therapy," for minors after multiple similar bills had failed in past years.
Daniel Ramos, executive director of the LGBT advocacy group One Colorado, released a statement at the time celebrating the passage of the legislation, calling it a "significant step in protecting our LGBTQ youth."
"No young person should ever be shamed by a mental health professional into thinking that who they are is wrong. Mental health care should be ethical and affirming for all people — including LGBTQ young people," stated Ramos. "I applaud the Colorado General Assembly for their bipartisan support of this measure. Protecting our LGBTQ youth is not a partisan issue."
In September 2022, Chiles filed a complaint against the law, arguing that it violated the Free Speech Clause and Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Chiles contends that the law prevents her from freely discussing issues of sexual orientation and gender identity with her patients in violation of her sincerely held religious views.
“The government has no business censoring private conversations between clients and counselors, nor should a counselor be used as a tool to impose the government’s biased views on her clients,” ADF Legal Counsel Cody Barnett said in a statement.
A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 against Chiles in September, upholding an earlier district ruling in favor of the state therapy ban.
Circuit Judge Veronica Rossman, a Biden appointee, authored the majority opinion, writing that "Chiles had not met her burden of showing a likelihood of success on the merits of her First Amendment free speech and free exercise claims."
"By regulating which treatments Ms. Chiles may perform in her role as a licensed professional counselor, Colorado is not restricting Ms. Chiles's freedom of expression," wrote Rossman.
"In other words, Ms. Chiles's First Amendment right to freedom of speech is implicated under the MCTL, but it is not abridged."
Circuit Judge Harris Hartz, a George W. Bush appointee, authored the dissenting opinion, arguing that the majority failed to explain why "talk therapy is to be afforded lesser First Amendment protection than speech in general."
"Is the majority stating that professional speech should be treated differently under the First Amendment from identical speech by a nonprofessional? That would fly in the face of what the Supreme Court has recently told us," Hartz wrote.
Last December, the Supreme Court declined to review a similar case filed by a Christian therapist against Washington state's ban on "gay conversion therapy," which allowed the law to remain in effect.
