A Nebraska judge has upheld the toughest infant genetic testing law in the country, finding that it does not violate the rights of a couple who claim to be Scientologists.

Louise and Ray Spiering pinned their hopes for a successful challenge on the argument that the law –- which requires that infants be tested for certain metabolic disorders within 24 to 48 hours of birth -– should be subject to the highest level of judicial review.

“Strict scrutiny,” they argued, applies because the law infringes upon their religious rights as Scientologists and the fundamental rights of parents.

“Absent an 'immediate and substantial threat' to a child’s well-being, the state lacks a compelling governmental interest in superceding parental decisions concerning the medical care and treatment of their children,” the Spierings' motion for summary judgment said.

The Nebraska Supreme Court previously found the law constitutional under the less onerous “rational basis” standard. And U.S. District Judge Richard G. Kopf refused to accommodate the Spierings by applying strict scrutiny and granted summary judgment to the state.

The U.S. Supreme Court has “recognize[d] two competing values of equal worth: the right of parents to parent and the right of children to safety,” he said in his opinion. “It is not plausible that the Supreme Court would apply 'strict scrutiny' and thus tilt the table in favor of the rights of parents and against the safety of children.”

Kopf concluded that the testing law "is rationally related to a legitimate governmental interest," but said he was “acutely aware” that Nebraska, unlike some other states, does not allow exemptions for religious reasons.

"My job as a federal judge, particularly when applying rational basis scrutiny, does not allow me to second guess the politically accountable branches of Nebraska’s government on this very sensitive and important issue," he added.

By Matthew Heller
9/14/06