Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth for the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., shocked life advocates today when he dismissed an ongoing case challenging federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research.
In a 38-page decision, Lamberth said that he was bound by the U.S. Court of Appeals decision to that overturned his earlier order, which found that using taxpayer funds for the destruction of human embryos likely violated a federal law, known as the Dickey-Wicker amendment.
"While it may be true that by following the Court of Appeals' conclusion as to the ambiguity of 'research,' this Court has become a grudging partner in a bout of 'linguistic jujitsu…,' " Lamberth opined. "Therefore, the D.C. Circuit's conclusion that the term 'research' in the Dickey-Wicker Amendment is ambiguous binds this Court."
The lawsuit sought to remove taxpayers from having to fund research that involved the destruction of embryos. Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund, Advocates International and Gibson, Dunn & Grutcher, LLP represented James L. Sherley and Theresa Deisher, the two adult stem-cell scientists in the case.
"It has raised awareness among the general public about the truths of stem-cell research and the fact that adult stem cells are the preferable stem cells," Deisher said. "Those moneys should be spent in ways that will benefit patients and taxpayers rather than embryonic stem-cell scientists."
Contact: Catherine Snow
Source: CitizenLink
