Missouri Drops Appeal Against Lesbian Foster
Parents
Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon said that
the state plans to drop its legal challenge against a Kansas City lesbian
who sued the state after the state had rejected her application to become
a foster parent.
In 2003, Lisa Johnston and Dawn Roginski applied with the Department of
Social Services in Missouri in hope of becoming foster parents. Johnston
had even started her training to get her license when the application was
rejected on the grounds that a child raised by a same-sex couple might
face social disapproval.
Johnston sued the state on grounds that being a lesbian wasn't a viable
reason to deny her a license. The Department of Social Services on the
other hand argued that Johnston was not of "reputable character" based
upon Missouri's same-sex sodomy ban.
Attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union said the U.S. Supreme
Court ruling in Lawrence v. Texas, which struck down a Texas law against
sodomy in private settings, invalidated Missouri's law.
Earlier this year, Jackson County Circuit Judge Sandra Midkiff ruled that
Missouri could not deny a lesbian a foster parent license.
The judge ordered the agency to resume training for the couple and to
grant Johnston a license if she passed. Johnston has a bachelor's degree
in human development and family with special emphasis on child
development.