Riverside Unified School District has asked to dismiss the lawsuit over the inclusion of a transgender athlete in a high school race.
The plaintiffs’ complaint did not prove any damage to them, and did not prove preferential treatment to their teammate, the motion says.
“Plaintiffs have not alleged an injury in fact sufficient to confer constitutional standing,” the motion says.
The teammate was given a role on the seven-person varsity team on the Mt. San Antonio College Invitational. Neither of the plaintiffs made the cut. Their teammate was placed on the team after being a minute faster than the plaintiffs, and the plaintiffs might not have even been next in line, the motion said.
“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,” the motion continues.
The teammate’s lack of attendance at regular practices—alleged by the plaintiffs to be a sign of preferential treatment—was due to a prearranged agreement to accommodate her attempt to graduate a year early, the motion said.
A Jan. 31 amended complaint added a claim that the school violated California Education Code Section 220. The section says that no school can discriminate against a person on the basis of disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, nationality, race, ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation.
“Defendants, by permitting biological males to compete in female sports and access female spaces, thereby limiting fair competition; correct placements; medals; victories and the public recognition associated with victories; opportunities to advance to higher-level competitions; visibility to college recruiters; and privacy, unlawfully discriminate against Plaintiffs, biological females, on the basis of their gender,” the amended complaint said.
The school argued the plaintiffs’ request to remove their teammate from the varsity squad would be itself a violation of Section 220. Section 221.5 says that a student will be permitted to compete in teams consistent with their gender identity.
“Had the legislature intended for the inclusion of transgender students to be prohibited discrimination under Education Code Section 220, it would not have expressly required California school districts to engage in the very same discrimination,” the motion said.
The national tax-exempt Christian ministry Family Policy Alliance joined in the amended complaint through their program, Save Girls Sports. Its website says it was founded by the fundamentalist Protestant organization Focus on the Family in 2004.
Case information
Case No. 5:24-cv-02480.
Robert Tyler and Julianne Fleischer of Murrieta’s Advocates for Faith & Freedom represent the plaintiffs.
Milton Foster and Nathaniel Rosilez of Corona’s Fagen Friedman and Fulfrost represent the school.
California Central District Judge Sunshine Sykes presides.
Read the motion to dismiss here.
Read the complaint here.
