Update 2: Mom fighting son’s circumcision in federal court today

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A media frenzy is expected to accompany this afternoon’s hearing in federal court where attorneys representing a 31-year-old Boynton Beach woman will ask a judge to block any attempt to have her 4 1/2-year-old son circumcised.

Attorneys representing Heather Hironimus will ask Marra to stop Dennis Nebus, of Boca Raton, from having their son, Chase, circumcised, claiming it will cause irreparable harm and violate the boy’s constitutional rights.

The motion was filed Friday, a day after Hironimus was arrested in Broward County on an order from Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Jeffrey Gillen. He ordered her arrest in March after she failed to appear in court with Chase to turn the boy over to his father.

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In 2012, Hironimus consented to the circumcision as part of a parenting plan between her and Nebus. But she later changed her mind. Gillen said she was bound by the agreement. The 4th District Court of Appeal upheld the decision without comment.

The case has attracted the attention of “intactivists” throughout the country who believe circumcision is barbaric and causes deep psychological wounds. Driven by social media, they have rallied behind Hironimus and protested Gillen’s rulings.

In recent federal court filings, Hunker says that the operation is medically unnecessary and would endanger Chase’s life because he does not respond well to anesthesia. Further, he claims, the operation could permanently damage the boy’s genitals.

“He is also prone to keloid scars such that the procedure may adversely affect the normal functioning of his genitals in a way that it would not affect others,” Hunker wrote.

Attorneys representing Nebus counter that medical experts recommend circumcision for boys to reduce the risk of cancer and other health maladies. The location of the boy is unknown.

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