Lawsuit dismissed over transgender athlete at Riverside’s King High School

Lawyers for plaintiffs in a lawsuit involving a former transgender athlete at Riverside’s Martin Luther King High School have vowed to appeal a ruling dismissing the roughly 15-month-old case.

A federal judge last month dismissed the lawsuit, filed on behalf of two female cross-country athletes at King at the time, on the grounds that “M.L.,” the transgender athlete at the center of the complaint, has graduated.

Advocates for Faith & Freedom, the Murrieta-based law firm representing the plaintiffs, said in a Thursday, March 5, news release that it has filed a motion to reconsider the ruling.

The lawsuit includes claims for monetary damages that don’t hinge on whether M.L. is still enrolled at King, according to the release.

Also, the policy allowing transgender athletes in girls’ sports remains in place, states the release, which adds that the plaintiffs “have already identified another male athlete competing in girls’ events under the same policy, demonstrating the controversy is ongoing.”

“Female athletes deserve fairness,” Advocates attorney Julianne Fleischer said in the release. “And we intend to see this fight through until the law is enforced.”

The release, which referenced Title IX, a federal civil rights law banning sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs, also noted that the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on the issue of students whose sex assigned at birth is male competing in girls’ sports.

“The overwhelming weight of the Constitution, Title IX, and the direction of the Supreme Court all point the same way,” Robert Tyler, Advocates president and chief counsel, said in the release. “We are confident that women’s sports will be protected and that these young women will ultimately prevail.”

A spokesperson for the Riverside Unified School District did not respond to a request for comment.

Advocates filed the lawsuit in November 2024 on behalf of “K.S.” and “T.S.,” described at the time as ninth- and 11th-grade athletes on King’s cross-country team.

According to the complaint, T.S. was “ousted” from a spot in a regional cross-country meet “to make room for a biological male transgender athlete who did not consistently attend practices and failed to satisfy many of the team’s varsity eligibility qualifications.”

“As a result, T.S. missed opportunities to compete at a high-profile meet, losing valuable chances for college recruitment and recognition,” the lawsuit alleged.

M.L., the transgender athlete, received more favorable treatment than T.S., K.S. “and other female athletes who have consistently satisfied many of the varsity eligibility qualifications,” the lawsuit alleged.

In court papers, lawyers for the school district disputed the allegations. Plaintiffs, they wrote, failed to prove “that T.S. suffered any injury in fact as a result of M.L.’s selection to the King girls’ varsity cross country team.”

They added: “Plaintiffs’ allegations that T.S. would receive a varsity spot if M.L. were not on the team is purely speculative and unsupported by Plaintiffs’ facts as alleged.”

Also at issue were T-shirts worn by K.S. and T.S. that read “Save Girls’ Sports” and “It’s Common Sense. XX ≠ XY.”

School officials told the girls to remove or cover the shirts, with an assistant principal saying the shirts “created a ‘hostile’ environment” and that “wearing the ‘Save Girls’ Sports’ shirts was analogous to a student who wore a swastika in front of a Jewish student,” the lawsuit alleges.

That violated the girls’ free speech rights, according to the lawsuit, which added that the plaintiffs “are Christians … (who) believe God created boys and girls with unique biological differences.”

The lawsuit alleged violations of T.S.’s and K.S.’s First Amendment rights, due process and equal protection under the law as well as Title IX.

Besides unspecified financial damages, the lawsuit sought a court order against the school district “to prevent further suppression of their free speech rights, a judgment affirming Title IX protections for female athletes,” according to a 2024 Advocates news release.