The British Columbia Court of Appeal has struck down a six-month prison sentence for a trans youth’s father who was convicted of contempt for publicly discussing his child’s private medical details in breach of a court order.
The youth had taken his father to court to stop him giving media interviews in which he identified his child and discussed their medical treatment for gender dysphoria, as well as the father’s objections to the process. The three-judge appeal panel found the man’s lawyer provided ineffective assistance by not recognizing the prosecutors’ deal would have seen his client released upon his guilty plea.
But the father, identified only as C.D., repeatedly breached the order, continued giving interviews, and started an online crowdfunding campaign that also revealed private information about the child.