A federal judge in Maryland has dismissed a lawsuit brought by three parents against Montgomery County Public Schools to stop a policy of hiding students’ gender transitions from “unsupportive” caregivers.
U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm ruled late Thursday that the parents lack legal standing to proceed because the school district designed its Gender Support Plan guidelines to “apply flexibly.”
That means they exclude parents only at the request of transgender or gender nonconforming students who fear psychological or physical abuse — an area of “compelling interest” where Supreme Court precedent allows government intervention, the judge ruled.
“In sum, the Guidelines neither mandate nor encourage the exclusion or distrust of parents, but aim to include parents and other family in the support network they are intended to create,” Judge Grimm wrote in his opinion.
In a statement emailed to The Washington Times, the Montgomery County Board of Education welcomed the ruling.
“The Court rightly found that our Guidelines for Gender Identity actively encourage familial involvement in developing and implementing a transgender or gender nonconforming student’s ‘Gender Support Plan’ whenever possible,” the statement reads.
DOCUMENT: Montgomery County Public Schools lawsuit opinion
The board added that the ruling affirms the school district’s “strong commitment” to protecting student safety and privacy and preventing discrimination against gender-transitioning students.
Three unidentified parents filed the lawsuit in October 2020. It claims that the district violates their right under the 14th Amendment “to direct the care, custody, education, and control of their minor children” by questioning students’ gender identities in a confidential intake form.
Their attorney, Rick Claybrook, said they are considering an appeal.
According to district guidelines, teachers may hide how gender-transitioning students identify at school by reverting to “birth” names and pronouns with parents the children fear will not support them.
The guidelines state that “all students should feel comfortable expressing their gender identity,” Judge Grimm noted in his ruling.
• Sean Salai can be reached at ssalai@washingtontimes.com.
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