10th Cir. Court of Appeals Affirms Decision that Healthcare Providers Are Not Required to Report Consensual Sex Between Minors

Via The Hays Daily News (9/18/07):

An appeals court has dismissed an appeal of a federal judge's decision that health care providers and others are not required under Kansas law to report underage sex between consenting adolescents.

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver ruled Tuesday that the case became moot because Kansas lawmakers repealed the state's sexual abuse reporting law and replaced it with a new one that became effective Jan. 1.

The appeal was filed by former Attorney General Phill Kline, after his office lost a challenge to his interpretation of the statute. Attorney General Paul Morrison joined in a motion filed by an abortion-rights advocacy group seeking the dismissal of Kline's appeal.

"This case is important because this effort by (then) Attorney General Kline posed a great threat to the health and well-being of teenagers in the state of Kansas. This ruling is a great victory for teenagers in Kansas," said Bonnie Scott Jones, an attorney for the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights.