A group of parents are suing an Ohio school district after a female student allegedly suffered ‘severe emotional trauma’ by teachers accused of pressuring her to identify as male.
The parents filed a lawsuit against Hilliard City Schools in January last year in a bid to prohibit educators from discussing sexual matters with students. The suit also aimed to ban teachers from wearing badges issuing support of LGBTQ students.
In an amended suit filed this month, the parents accused school officials of forcing a female student to adopt ‘a new name and identity as the opposite sex’.
School officials ‘treated the child as the opposite sex’ without parental consent after allegedly ‘diagnosing’ the girl with gender dysphoria, according to the complaint obtained by DailyMail.com.
Her parents were not privy to the district’s diagnosis and, according to the suit, the student’s ‘condition spiraled out of control’ after the family was made aware of the situation when a postcard using the child’s male name and pronouns arrived at the home.
The parents allege the district’s actions caused the student to take self-harming actions and resulted in a suicide attempt at school, the filing claims.
A group of parents filed a lawsuit against Hilliard City Schools in January last year in a bid to prohibit educators from discussing sexual matters with students. They have since filed an amendment to the complaint, alleging a female student allegedly suffered ‘severe emotional trauma’ by teachers accused of pressuring her to identify as male. Pictured is the school’s board in 2022
In the complaint, which lists the school board and its members as defendants, the parents accused school officials of deceiving them about the girl’s alleged-condition.
They claim that although they referred to the student using their ‘opposite-sex name’ while in school, teachers used pronounced consistent with their ‘biological sex’ in the presence of the parents.
‘The district’s acts were reckless because district officials are not qualified – and are specifically denied entitlement to – make diagnoses and treatment decisions for somebody else’s child,’ the amended complaint filed on April 1 states.
The parents cited the student’s experience as one of several reasons they are concerned the district is ‘hiding their child’s gender dysphoria from them’.
The suit questions if school officials would ‘affirmatively deceive parents’ if the guardians are not identified as a ‘safe person’ or supporter of the LGBTQ community.
‘”Support” for ‘[LGBTQ+] youth or issues’ is a matter of personal opinion,’ the parents state. ‘Thus, a district official’s opinion of whether a parent is a “safe person” could arise from judgments related to a parent’s constitutionally-protected practices, such as practicing certain religions, expressing certain political views.’
President of the school board Brian Perry
VP Kara Crowley of the school board and member Zach Vorst
The district, in a response to the compliant filed on Monday, denied nearly all of the allegations and said the ‘alleged damages, if any, were proximately caused by the sole or contributory or comparative negligence of the plaintiffs.’
Hilliard City Schools stated the district ‘acted reasonably, in good faith, upon advice of counsel, in accordance with law and/or in the exercise of their statutory duties and responsibilities,’ according to the filing.
The district’s response also said the claim made by the parents is outside the statute of limitations.
The parents’ amended claim does not identify when the alleged suicide attempt occurred of what school the student attended.
It does state, however, that through ‘professional therapy and counseling’ it was determined that the student’s ‘problems were not gender dysphoria.’
The suit also aimed to ban teachers from wearing badges issuing support of LGBTQ students
Hilliard City Schools, in a statement to NBC 4, said the substance of the complaint remains the same as the version originally filed in January 2023.
The district reiterated its position on the suit has not changed and that its motion to dismiss remains applicable. The district is still waiting for a ruling on the motion.
At the time of the original filing, the district said the lawsuit contained ‘thread-bare assertions, innuendo, rumor, and spurious legal conclusions’.
Superintendent David Stewart added it was ‘filled with misstatements of fact and mischaracterizations.’
DailyMail.com has approached the district and school board for comment.
For confidential help or support, call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
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