An Oklahoma parent is taking Edmond Public Schools to court over the alleged attack on her 15-year-old daughter by a 17-year-old biological male student who identifies as transgender.
The victim was reportedly “attacked and severely beaten” by the older boy.
The suit, which was filed on May 25, said the violent incident occurred on Oct. 26, 2022, at 7:15 a.m. Theresa Gooden, the parent of the alleged victim, said that the school district was aware that the male student was identifying as female.
BREAKING: A biological male who identifies as transgender has been charged with assault after allegedly beating up two female students in the girl's bathroom at an Oklahoma high school. Police said one girl had injuries to the "eye, face and head with a possible concussion."
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) December 16, 2022
Gooden also said officials knew he “regularly used the girl’s bathroom and not the boy’s bathroom.” She is seeking $75,000 in damages to cover attorney’s fees and lawsuit expenses.
If correct, this is a clear violation of Oklahoma law. Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a measure last August mandating public school students use the bathrooms aligned with their birth gender.
The law further stipulated that any student claiming to be transgender could use a single-occupancy restroom or possibly a changing room at the school.
As Gooden’s suit noted, there is a clause in the law allowing for legal action by a parent if their child’s school does not follow the measure.
Edmond Public Schools Superintendent Angela Grunewald defended the system in a YouTube video. She acknowledged that parents may wonder how such a violation could happen, but she claimed school officials were in the dark.
Grunewald said that “if a parent comes in and enrolls their child as a certain gender, and when you look at that child by all social norms they look and present themselves as that gender, it’s not something that you would question.”
She also noted that birth certificates are not required to enroll in high school, so there was not one in the alleged attacker’s file.
Grunewald confirmed that the transgender student is no longer enrolled in the school. She said that two separate policies were violated in the incident. One involved fighting, the other was that “all students must go to the bathroom of their birth gender.”
She said there were unidentified “consequences” handed out for both violations.
The case is Gooden v. Edmond Public Schools.
