WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a request by South Carolina officials to bar a transgender boy from using the boys’ restrooms at his school.
The court denied an emergency request filed by the state, which has recently enacted measures aimed at forcing schools to bar transgender students from using restrooms that correspond with their gender identity.
The brief order stressed that the decision “is not a ruling on the merits of the legal issues presented in the litigation.”
Three conservative members of the court — Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch — said they would have granted the request.
The only issue before the Supreme Court was whether one ninth grade student, named in court papers as John Doe, could use the boys’ restrooms at his school while litigation continues.
South Carolina legislators have sought to restrict transgender bathroom access by including language in budget bills that withdraws funding for schools that do not comply with their demands.
Doe’s parents sued on his behalf, saying that the measures violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, which requires that the laws apply equally to everyone, as well as Title IX, the federal law that bars discrimination in education.
A federal judge in South Carolina has not ruled on the substantive legal issues yet and rejected a request from Doe that he be allowed to use his preferred restroom while the case continues.
In August, the Richmond-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a similar request, prompting the state to turn to the Supreme Court.
In the Supreme Court’s new term, which begins next month, the justices will consider a major case on state laws that ban transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s school and college sports.
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