California judge rules against school district’s ‘forced outing’ policy of transgender students
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
CHINO VALLEY UNIFIED LOSES LAWSUIT OVER PARENTAL NOTIFICATION POLICY
Just over a year after California Attorney General Rob Bonta took the Chino Valley Unified School District to court over its parental notification policy, a San Bernardino Superior Court judge handed Bonta a victory in the case.
Judge Michael Sachs ruled that the district’s policy of notifying parents that their children are going by different pronouns or names at school, or accessing gender-segregated school facilities or activities for a sex other than what appears on their birth certificate, was permanently halted. The policy previously was subject to a preliminary injunction while the case worked its way through the legal system.
“There is no forced secrecy in this case; parents are still free to have conversations with their child about gender identity; and parents have the right to observe a classroom, talk to a teacher, and review educational records. In other words, a parent asserting their rights will likely be informed,” the judge wrote in his ruling.
Bonta took a victory lap Wednesday morning, saying, “The decision from the court to grant a permanent injunction and declaratory relief against Chino Valley Unified’s initial forced outing policy is a win for all students in Chino Valley and across the state.”
The judge left a third provision of the policy, which require staff to inform parents about changes to their children’s official or unofficial records, intact.
It’s worth noting that the district in March voted to change its parental notification policy to remove the requirement about notification over pronouns, names and facility usage.
Still, the Liberty Justice Center, a libertarian-leaning legal nonprofit that is representing the district in court, has vowed to appeal the court ruling.
“We look forward to the next steps in this lawsuit and will continue to fight for California families at no cost to taxpayers,” said Emily Rae, senior counsel for the center.
Any appeal would have to be filed with the California Court of Appeal.
CONDIT SPEAKS OUT ON ALVARADO-GIL ALLEGATIONS
As we previously reported, newly minted Republican State Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil is in hot water at the moment, as she faces a lawsuit alleging that she coerced her then-Chief of Staff Chad Condit into performing sexual acts on her.
Now, the plaintiff in that case is speaking out. Sort of.
The law firm representing Condit, Schimmel & Parks, issued a statement Wednesday saying “workplace sexual harassment always involves power dynamics, and this case is no different.”
“Sen. Alvarado-Gil’s abuse of power and retaliation against her former chief of staff is documented in explicit detail in our verified lawsuit. Her inappropriate sexual behavior towards Mr. Condit, and predatory fixation on his family, is conduct that no employer should engage in, and it is unbecoming of a state senator. We look forward to seeking justice for our client for the substantial harm inflicted on him by his former boss,” the firm said.
The firm said that Alvarado-Gil is subject to the same laws as anyone else in California, and urged the State Senate to conduct a “thorough, unbiased investigation” into the matter. According to Condit’s legal team, that investigation has begun.
“No individual, regardless of their position, should be allowed to abuse their authority or retaliate against those who have the courage to speak up,” the firm said in a statement.
It marks the first public statement from the plaintiff’s side since the lawsuit was filed last week.
Alvarado-Gil’s attorney, Ognian Gavrilov of Sacramento, told The Bee in an email statement that “this is a case where a disgruntled former employee has fabricated an outlandish story, presented without evidence, to get a payday.”
Gavrilov added that he expected his client to be fully cleared of wrongdoing, and that Condit’s legal team “better have some real evidence to back up these outlandish claims and platitudes” if it goes to trial.
Gavrilov previously told The Bee that “there’s never gonna be a settlement from this case,” and that either it would be dismissed or he would take it to trial.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Did Donald Trump really invoke Viktor Orbán as his chief character witness?? I watched Orbán dismantle Hungarian democracy — destroy the free press, take over the courts, strip away freedoms from women and the LGBTQ community AND reach an insatiable, corrupt hand into every business in the country.”
- California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, discussing Trump’s reference to Hungary’s authoritarian prime minister in the debate, via X. Kounalakis served as ambassador to Hungary under former President Barack Obama, from 2010 to 2013.
Best of The Bee:
Rich millennials are moving out of California, new study says. Here’s where they’re going, via Sarah Linn.
Has Joe Biden presided over the ‘worst inflation’ ever, as Trump claimed in debate? Via David Lightman.
California’s SEIU Local 1000 starts a new chapter after tumultuous leadership changes, via William Melhado.
This story was originally published September 12, 2024 at 4:55 AM.