Arizona gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs’ husband is a child psychiatrist who was named in an explosive lawsuit brought against the state by the parents of a 10-year-old transgender child in 2020, according to documents reviewed by The Daily Wire.
Patrick Goodman is a psychiatrist on staff at Phoenix Children’s Hospital and specializes “in serving youth and families affected by trauma and grief.” Goodman is also listed on an undated document as a provider in the hospital’s “gender support program” serving “gender diverse” and transgender youth.
The details of Goodman’s work at the medical center are unclear. Phoenix Children’s Hospital did not respond to multiple requests to make Goodman available for an interview.
Hobbs, a Democrat, is facing Republican Kari Lake in the race to replace Republican Governor Doug Ducey, who is term-limited out of office at the end of the year. Hobbs has publicly supported sex change surgeries for minors. In March, she condemned Ducey for signing legislation banning sex change surgeries for minors and blocking biological males from competing in female sports’ leagues.
The hospital that employs Goodman takes a gender affirming approach to the treatment of children diagnosed with gender dysphoria or who identify as a sex different from their biological sex, according to the hospital’s website.
“Every child has a different way of expressing gender and some may express themselves in ways that are different from what we expect. Many gender expansive children are comfortable with the sex they were assigned at birth. However, there are times when a child may assert a gender identity that is different from, or not consistent with, the sex they were assigned at birth. They may also say they’re not comfortable with their physical sex characteristics,” the website says.
The hospital identifies three different categories of gender confused youth. Gender-expansive youth “express a wider, more flexible range of gender identity and/or expression than typically associated with their sex assigned at birth.” Gender questioning youth “are exploring and discovering their gender identities.” Transgender youth is an umbrella term “for children and youth whose gender identity is different from their sex assigned at birth.”
In 2020, the hospital was indirectly involved in a lawsuit brought against the state on behalf of three transgender children. The children’s guardians sued the state to force it to change the birth certificate of each child to reflect the gender each now identifies as, rather than their biological sex. In Arizona, people are allowed to change their birth certificates only after undergoing a sex change operation.
Goodman is identified as a therapist to one of the children involved in the lawsuit, a 10-year-old trans girl identified in court documents as Jane Doe. In one document dated November 9, 2020, Goodman was identified as a potential witness in the case, expected to testify on the child’s treatment. Goodman was to testify in relation to Jane Doe’s request for a preliminary injunction to force the state to change the child’s birth certificate ahead of the start of the school year.
“Patrick Goodman is a therapist at Phoenix Children’s Hospital and Jane Doe’s mental health provider. He is expected to testify regarding his mental health treatment of Jane Doe’s gender dysphoria and opinion regarding Jane’s health and well-being absent injunctive relief,” a court filing states. The case is ongoing and it was not clear if Goodman has taken the stand.
In the case of Goodman’s patient, the boy began “expressing” himself as a girl at “two-and-a-half years old,” according to court documents.
“Jane’s parents initially thought this was a phase, but Jane persisted. Eventually, they brought her to a child psychologist specializing in care for young children with some prior experience with transgender youth, Dr. Beth Onufrak. Dr. Onufrak evaluated Jane over several sessions and concluded that Jane would meet the diagnostic criteria for gender dysphoria,” a filing says.
When it came time for Doe to start second grade, Doe’s parents asked the school to allow their child to attend as a girl. The school agreed, but students recognized Doe. The teasing and bullying lasted for several years before Doe’s parents attempted to enroll their child in a new school where the children wouldn’t know Doe’s history, according to the suit.
“The new school where they would like to enroll her, however, will not enroll Jane as female without a corrected birth certificate,” court documents state. Doe’s parents did not seek medical treatment due to Doe’s age. Under legislation Ducey signed into law this year, Doe cannot legally receive sex-reassignment surgery until age 18.
“Without a corrected birth certificate, Jane will be required to reveal that she is transgender to this new school. That will prevent her from safely moving to another school where she is free from pervasive harassment and bullying that prevent her from learning and cause her further significant emotional harm,” the lawsuit states. “Jane’s parents seek to correct the sex listed on Jane’s birth certificate so that she can enroll in a new school before having to return in person to her current school, but are prevented from doing so because of Arizona’s surgical requirement.”
Litigation in the case remains ongoing. In the latest filings available, the court approved the plaintiffs’ request to compel information from the state on several questions after the plaintiffs filed a new complaint.