Maine lawmaker censured for Facebook post asks Supreme Court to intervene

DOJ sues Maine implicit transgender athletes

Justice Department sues Maine successful ineligible feud implicit transgender athletes 04:04

Washington — A subordinate of Maine's House of Representatives is asking the Supreme Court for exigency alleviation aft she was censured for criticizing the authorities for allowing transgender athletes astatine nationalist precocious schools to enactment successful girls sports.

Laurel Libby, a Republican who represents the state's House District 90, asked the precocious tribunal to contented an injunction that would necessitate the chamber's clerk to number her votes. She argued that her constituents are being disenfranchised arsenic a effect of the punishment imposed connected her for refusing to apologize aft she was censured by the authorities House successful a party-line ballot past month.

"Without exigency alleviation from this court, Maine House District 90's residents are without adjacent practice for the remainder of their chosen legislator's term," lawyers for Libby wrote successful their exigency entreaty to the Supreme Court. 

They said that the sanctions imposed by Maine's House talker permission her constituents "without a dependable oregon ballot for each measure coming to the House level for the remainder of her elected term, which runs done 2026." Libby was archetypal elected to the authorities legislature successful 2020.

The quality stems from a station Libby shared to Facebook successful February that called attraction to a transgender jock who placed archetypal successful the girls' rod vault astatine the state's track-and-field championship. In Maine, transgender students are eligible to participate successful athletics successful accordance with their sex identity. The Justice Department filed a civilian lawsuit against Maine's Department of Education earlier this period implicit its policy, which it says discriminates against women successful usurpation of Title IX. The suit came aft President Trump signed an enforcement order successful February barring transgender girls and women from competing connected sports teams that align with their sex identity.

In effect to Libby's post, which included photos and the sanction of the athlete, a minor, the Maine House voted 75 to 70 to censure her. The censure resolution stated that Libby refused to region her station aft she was warned it whitethorn endanger the jock and said "it is simply a basal tenet of authorities and bully motivation quality that children should not beryllium targeted by big politicians, particularly erstwhile that targeting could effect successful superior harm."

The solution besides directed Libby to "accept afloat work for the incidental and publically apologize to the House and to the radical of the authorities of Maine." Libby, it concluded, "must comport herself successful a mode that pursues the highest standards of legislative conduct."

After the censure solution was approved, Libby was brought to the good of the House enclosure and directed to apologize. When she refused to bash so, the talker recovered her successful usurpation of a Maine House regularisation that prohibits a subordinate blameworthy of a usurpation of the legislature's rules and orders from voting oregon speaking "until the subordinate has made satisfaction."

Since then, rotation telephone votes denote a "Z" for Libby's district. Her lawyers person said her spot has not had a ballot connected the state's fund oregon connected bills Libby sponsored herself.

Libby and six of her constituents filed a suit successful national tribunal to person her ballot restored, alleging violations of the Constitution, including the First Amendment. A national territory tribunal declined to supply her with preliminary relief, uncovering that legislative immunity precluded it due to the fact that her authorisation by Maine's House talker was a legislative act, and the disenfranchisement of her district's voters could not flooded that immunity.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit besides rejected a petition to bid the clerk to number Lobby's votes.

In her petition for the Supreme Court's intervention, Libby's lawyers said the alleviation they are seeking would reconstruct "the presumption quo of adjacent representation, bringing the Maine House backmost into conformity with each different authorities and Congress."

They person asked the precocious tribunal to measurement successful by May 6, erstwhile the House volition convene for different level session, oregon perceive oral arguments connected her petition adjacent month.

"Without this court's intervention, District 90's residents person nary adjacent practice successful the House — indefinitely," they said. "And determination is nary governmental solution for defendants' unconstitutional acts."

Libby's lawyers said she remains the typical for District 90 with "no law mechanics to reconstruct her ballot unless, contrary to our astir basal First Amendment freedoms, she recants her views to the speaker's liking."