Judge Loretta M. Giorgi ordered San Francisco's director of elections to strike the measure from the city's ballot because she said that it is "expressly preempted" by the California Business and Professions Code.

Under that statute, only the state is allowed to regulate medical procedures, and "the evidence presented is overwhelmingly persuasive that circumcision is a widely practiced medical procedure," the ruling said.

After a brief hearing, Giorgi also found that the proposed ban would violate citizens' right to the free exercise of religion, said Deputy City Atty. Mollie Lee, because it targets Muslims and Jews, whose faiths call for circumcising males.

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1. Ian+ wrote: Hopefully that’ll put an end to that foolishness. July 29, 9:48 am | [comment link]

2. Jim the Puritan wrote: Now let’s see what happens to the proposals to ban the sale of pets in the City. July 29, 2:39 pm | [comment link]

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