Temporary Restraining Order Denied in Missouri Stem Cell Suit
By Bryan Utter
Having failed in its bid for a temporary restraining order, an anti-stem cell group will try in August to win a permanent injunction against future grants of public funds to stem cell research.
Judge Jon Beetem of the Cole County Circuit Court declared Wednesday that Missouri Roundtable for Life failed to meet its evidentiary burden.
“The irreparable harm asserted by the plaintiff is insufficient to support a temporary restraining order,” Beetem said in his ruling.
The lawsuit seeks clarification on how money allocated to the Life Sciences Research Board may be used. The Missouri Roundtable for Life is concerned that the money may be used for human cloning and abortions, which the group asserts would potentially violate state law.
“We’re asking for the court to say what the law is,” Edward Martin, the group’s attorney, said after the hearing. “It would be news to Missourians if Life Sciences funds could go to abortion.”
The Roundtable also contends that the law has the potential to create entitlement programs for groups that receive funds to do stem cell research. “If money is spent today without any prohibitions, it’s like playing a game without any rules,” Martin said. “It’s very clear that the laws are meant to protect entities that do stem cell research, but the laws are so amorphous that it looks like they can’t have their funding cut.”
Attorneys for the state denied that the money would be used for any of the things the group was concerned about.
Karen King Mitchell, of the attorney general’s office, said at the hearing that no public funds would be dispersed through the Life Sciences Research Board to private entities until 2009. The Missouri Roundtable for Life responded Thursday in a press release, saying that they hope that this will lead to a resolution of the concerns over the funding.
The injunction hearing will take place at 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 1, before Judge Richard Callahan of the Cole County Circuit Court.
Originally published by Bryan Utter.
(c) 2008 Daily Record and the Kansas City Daily News-Press. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.