Judge Supports Stem Cell Funding Ban

16:23
Judge Supports Stem Cell Funding Ban -

In Washington, DC, the judge said this afternoon that his decision there 2 weeks, the arrest of all funding federal for research on embryonic stem cells, will be held while the case moves forward. Chief Judge Royce Lamberth, in response to a request from the Department of Justice (DOJ) that there is a preliminary injunction, issued an order of three pages this afternoon denying the request.

"Defendants are incorrect about much of their 'parade of horrors" that is supposed to result from the preliminary court injunction, "Lamberth wrote. It refers to the concerns expressed by the DOJ that stopping the research is deeply disturbing for laboratories and delay progress in developing new treatments for a variety of diseases. The National Institutes of Health stopped all research within its walls last week, although the work already financed outside NIH can continue, for now.

Lamberth believes that its hands are tied by the Dickey Amendment, adopted 14 years ago by Congress to ban federal funding for the destruction of embryos. Lamberth interprets that to include the funding of research on human embryonic stem cells, more broadly, although the Ministry of Health and Social Services and several presidential administrations have not agreed.

"In the view of the Court, a stay [allowing funding to continue] would flout the will of Congress," Lamberth wrote. "Congress remains perfectly free to amend or revise" the Dickey-Wicker amendment. "This court is not free to do so."

The next step in the case should come by the end this week. at that time, stem cells-adult applicants researchers James Sherley and Theresa Deisher-waiting to file what is called a motion for summary judgment, which asks that the case be decided without a trial. this could solve things one way or another, and in the meantime, Lamberth said the new status quo will stick.

See our full coverage of this issue.

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