Scores of protesters gathered around the courthouse in support of a mother after a judge issued an arrest order on Tuesday for her after she fled with her son to prevent his circumcision and ignored a demand to appear in court . Circuit Judge Jeffrey Gillen signed the order in a seven-minute hearing , three days after finding Heather Hironimus in contempt and warning that she would face imprisonment unless she reported to court with the child . Her attorney , Thomas Hunker , said his client is staying with her 4-year-old son in a shelter for domestic violence victims because the boy was 'scared to death ' of undergoing the surgery . Dennis Nebus of Boca Raton , right , sits in court on Tuesday , with his lawyers May Cain and William Snihur , Jr. , in a continuing legal battle with Heather Hironimus , the mother of his four-year-old son over circumcision . Warrant for arrest : Circuit Judge Jeffrey Gillen signed the order in a seven-minute hearing , three days after finding Heather Hironimus in contempt and warning that she would face imprisonment . Hironimus and the boy 's father , Dennis Nebus , were never married but share custody of their child . ' I was hoping the mother was going to be here , ' Nebus ' attorney May L. Cain said on Tuesday . ' I was , too , ' Gillen replied . The Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that the the judge last week called it 'reprehensible ' for the mom to have kept the boy 's location hidden from the father since February 20 . ' I will allow her to avoid incarceration or get out of jail if she signs the consent to the procedure , ' Gillen said Friday . In a parenting agreement filed in court , the two agreed to the boy 's circumcision , but the mother later changed her mind , leading to a long court battle . The father said he decided to pursue the circumcision in December 2013 when the boy was 3 , after noticing his son was urinating on his leg , reports The Sun Sentinel . The father on Friday said the boy 's pediatrician had diagnosed a condition called phimosis , which prevents retraction of the foreskin and that can be cured with circumcision . Circuit and appellate judges have sided with the father , but potential surgeons have backed out after refusing to get the mother 's consent or becoming the target of anti-circumcision protesters who side with her . Supporters of Heather Hironiumus gather out side of the South County Courthouse in Delray Beach , Florida where the mother was to face off in court with the father of her child , Dennis Nebus . 'She did this for one reason and one reason only : because the child is scared to death of this procedure , ' Hunker told Gillen , launching into a defense that was cut off by the judge . 'So Mr. Hunker , I take it then that the mother is not going to appear today ? ' the judge said . 'Correct , your honor , ' Hunker replied . 'OK , that 's all I needed to know , ' Gillen said . 'Your honor , if I may , ' the lawyer pleaded . 'No , you may not , ' the judge shot back . Although circumcision rates have fallen in the U.S. , a majority of boys still undergo the procedure to remove their foreskin . Meantime , a movement opposing circumcision has developed , and the case has become a rallying cry for so-called 'intactivists ' who deride the surgery as barbaric . A small group of those anti-circumcision advocates gathered outside the court to demonstrate in support of Hironimus , and expressed outrage over the judge 's order . 'It 's just ridiculous , ' said one of the protesters , Jennifer Cote of Pembroke Pines . 'She 's protecting her son . ' Supporters of Heather Hironiumus , Anthony Mollical and Zeresh Altork , gather outside of the South County Courthouse in Delray Beach where Hironiumus was meant to appear with her child on Tuesday .
Circuit Judge Jeffrey Gillen ordered arrest for mom Heather Hironimus who fled with her son to prevent his circumcision . Her attorney said his client is staying with son in a shelter for domestic violence victims because the boy was 'scared to death ' of surgery . Hironimus and the boy 's father , Dennis Nebus , were never married but share custody of their child .