Judge Bars Contact With HIVer

A judge in Mississippi has ordered an HIV-positive woman to stay away from her three nieces and nephews out of fears she poses a health risk to them. County chancery judge Pat Watts ruled in a custody hearing that a woman who wished to live with her HIV-positive sister could not do so, and that the woman's children must have no contact with their aunt in order for her to retain custody. Attorneys at Lambda Legal, calling the ruling discriminatory, urged the court to reexamine the issue and base its final decision on science, not fear.