Federal judge renews block on Montana drag show ban
A federal judge Friday extended his block on a Montana law that seeks to ban drag story hours in public schools and libraries, saying state attorneys haven’t proven that the events are harmful to children and that the law is written too vaguely.
U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris also said the law, which passed this year’s Montana Legislature as House Bill 359, chills free speech protected by the First Amendment.
The law, Morris wrote in an order, “targets protected speech and expression. The statutory text and legislative history evince anti-LGBTQ+ animus. No evidence before the Court indicates that minors face any harm from drag-related events or other speech and expression critical of gender norms.”
He continued that the bill’s provisions “prove vague and overbroad, chilling protected speech and creating a risk of disproportionate enforcement against trans, Two-Spirit, and gender nonconforming people.”
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Morris previously issued what’s known as a temporary restraining order in late July, blocking the law on an emergency basis days before the annual Montana Pride celebration was scheduled in Helena.
The new order, granting a motion for preliminary injunction, represents an early-litigation determination about whether the plaintiffs’ case is strong enough to justify continuing to block the law while litigation continues. As such, Friday’s decision extends the hold keeping the ban from taking effect, but doesn’t represent a final ruling in the case.