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A Florida mother is in court seeking to block her 3-year-old son's circumcision.

(tomasworks | iStock)

A battle over whether a 3-year-old boy should be circumcised is being fought between his parents in the courtrooms of Florida.

When Heather Hironimus and Dennis Nebus split up in 2011, the unmarried couple drafted a parenting agreement that among other things stipulated that Nebus would be responsible for scheduling and paying having their son, Chase, circumcised, Salon reported.

By the time Nebus, of Boca Raton, scheduled the procedure, Boynton Beach resident Hironimus had decided she no longer wanted the boy circumcised.

In court papers, Hironimus argued that the procedure wasn't medically necessary and said she didn't want Chase subjected to the required general anesthesia "for fear of death," according to the Broward-Palm Beach New Times.

Nebus appeared to have won the battle last week when Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Jeffrey Gillen ruled that there was no reason why the parents should not abide by their original agreement.

In his decision, Gillen cited testimony by pediatric urologist Charles Flack, who said circumcision was not medically necessary but noted that "penile cancer only occurs in uncircumcised males" and that circumcision reduces the risk of HIV infection, the Orlando Sentinel said.

Hironimus appealed to a higher court. On Wednesday, the Court of Appeals for Florida's fourth district issued a stay of Gillen's ruling.

The case has drawn the support of circumcision opponents, called "intactivists," who believe that circumcision robs boys of their foreskins without giving them a say, Gawker said.

While she waited for the appellate court to rule, Hironimus launched a GoFundMe page dedicated to Chase's predicament. She wrote:

"My attorney and I are going to be appealing this decision as neither of us believe it should be a decision left to anyone other than my son, who is 3 1/2 and fully aware. As a stay at home mom, I do not have the funding to be able to fully accomplish this on my own. I am pleading with fellow intactavists, parents and all others to help me save my son, his foreskin, his rights and hopefully other children from allowing the 'system' to make these decisions. Please help me help my son!! Thank you from myself and my son!!"



The page had been shared more than 4,900 times and raised $5,863 by Saturday afternoon.

Circumcision, the cutting away of the foreskin from the penis, has been practiced ritually by a variety of cultures. It came into vogue during the 1800s to discourage masturbation and became a norm for newborn American males after World War II. But it remains frowned upon in Europe and circumcision rates are declining in the U.S., according to the New Times.

As the Florida case worked its way through the courts, a new study suggested that males circumcised after the age of stand 20 times the risk of side effects as younger patients, the International Business Times reported.

