Utah Judge Scott Johansen (Photo: NBC News screenshot)
Backlash against a Utah judge’s decision on Tuesday to take a lesbian couple’s foster child prompted a quick reversal.
Judge Scott Johansen of Utah’s Seventh District performed a legislative U-turn that will put a 9-month-old baby back into the hands of April Hoagland and Beckie Peirce. The decision was made Friday.
“I was caught off guard,” Hoagland told KUTV CBS 2 on Tuesday of the initial ruling, WND reported. She and Peirce planned to raise the foster child in the city of Price with two biological children born to each of the women.
The baby had been with the couple for three months when Johansen cited research saying heterosexuals provide healthier environments for children. The family immediately appealed his decision.
Gay rights activists, the Anti-Defamation League, Human Rights Campaign and the American Civil Liberties Union all blasted Tuesday ruling.
The couple was told they could become foster parents after the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriages in June, NBC News reported Friday. The pair held a same-sex wedding ceremony in 2014.
Utah’s Gov. Gary Herbert also weighed in on the case. The Republican said the judge should not allow personal opinions to cloud his judgment on what is legally permissible.
“I’m a little puzzled by the action down there, personally. [The judge] may not like the law, but he should follow the law. … We don’t want to have activism on the bench in any way, shape or form,” Herbert said Thursday, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
A full transcript of the judge’s ruling will not be publicly available because the case involves a foster child. Judicial rules restrict Johansen from discussing pending cases, Utah courts spokeswoman Nancy Volmer said Friday, NBC reported.
April Hoagland, left, and Beckie Peirce (Photo: NBC News screenshot)
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