Why this family is leaving Idaho for good

Michael Devitt had a vision for his retirement. After three decades of practicing physical therapy in downtown Boise, Idaho, he and his three employees would close their office together and retire.

“We were going to run through the tape in probably four years,” Devitt said. “But you know, you got to live the life you have, not the life you dreamed of. I guess.”

Things changed for Devitt earlier this year, after Idaho’s Gov. Brad Little signed into law a bill criminalizing transgender people for using bathrooms that align with their gender identity.

Devitt’s daughter is transgender.

“That completely changed not the way we saw Idaho, but the way Idaho saw our family,” he said.

A federal judge blocked that specific law, but it came after a series of legislative actions aimed at restricting transgender Idahoans.

“That made us have to rethink our relationship with the state of Idaho, and me in particular, my work situation and my private practice clinic that I had owned for 28 years.”

To hear the rest of Devitt’s story, click the audio player above.