A North Carolina judge has ruled that a woman, who transitioned from a girl to a boy at age 16, can proceed with a lawsuit against the “gender-affirming doctors” who treated her.
Now 25 years old, Prisha Mosley filed her lawsuit in July 2023, targeting multiple doctors who advised her to transition after diagnosing her with various mental health disorders. Mosley’s suit accuses the doctors of medical malpractice, civil conspiracy, negligent infliction of emotional distress, unfair and deceptive trade practices, breach of fiduciary duty rising to the level of constructive fraud, facilitating fraud, and fraud, according to Fox News.
“[T]he Court has determined as a matter of law that the allegations of Plaintiff’s Complaint, treated as true, are sufficient to state a claim upon which relief may be granted,” said North Carolina Superior Court Judge Robert Ervin.
After the defendants requested dismissal, Ervin agreed to drop the charges of medical malpractice, negligent infliction, unfair and deceptive trade practices, and breach of fiduciary duty, as reported by Fox News. However, he allowed charges of civil conspiracy and fraud to proceed.
This case is believed to be the first “detransitioner” lawsuit allowed to continue in the judicial system, according to Mosley’s attorney, Josh Payne.
“This is the first substantive ruling we are aware of in which a Court has held that a detransitioner’s case against her health care professionals is legally viable. We are honored to represent Prisha as she pursues justice for herself and her family and tries to prevent what happened to her from happening to others,” Payne stated.
Mosley recounted how doctors suggested she become a boy and undergo surgeries with irreversible consequences, including breast removal. These recommendations were made as part of treatment for her diagnosed mental health issues.
“By age 16, I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and an eating disorder,” Mosley wrote. “I engaged in self-harm by cutting myself, which became so serious that I was taken to the emergency room.”
“Starting when I was 16 years old, and continuing into my teen and young adult years, doctors and counselors set me on a path of medicalized ‘gender transition,’” Mosley said. “They told me that changing my body to look like a boy’s body would cure my mental health problems. They told me that injecting large amounts of testosterone into my female body would be good for me. They also encouraged me to undergo surgery to remove my healthy breasts.
“I trusted these health care providers to take care of me. Because of that relationship of trust, and my vulnerable condition, I believed what they said and I thought they were treating me properly,” Mosley wrote. “Years later, I realized that I had been lied to and misled in the worst possible way. Years of taking testosterone prevented my body from developing as it should have. It caused significant vaginal atrophy and the inability to have intercourse.”
“My voice was permanently changed; I was no longer able to lift my voice and sing, which I used to love doing,” Mosley claimed. “I experienced severe pain in my shoulders, neck, and genital area. I do not know if I will be able to conceive and give birth to a child.”
“As a result of breast surgery, I have to live without my breasts, and I am unable to nurse a child, should I be able to conceive one. I have pain in my chest where my breasts used to be,” Mosley wrote.
Mosley commented on the Court’s decision to allow her lawsuit to continue. She spoke of the stress of the legal process in her case but expressed optimism with Ervin’s ruling.
“I am grateful that the Court has recognized my case has merit. The legal process can be daunting,” Mosley said. “I am encouraged by the Court’s ruling in my favor, and I am determined to see the case through to a final victory. Young people struggling with their mental health, like I was, deserve better. They need compassionate support. They do not deserve to be lied to and misled into life-altering medical procedures that only cause harm.”
