A federal judge ruled Friday against Maine Assemblyman Laurel Libby in a lawsuit in the state legislature that overturned her accusation. Libby was criticized on February 15th in a social media post identifying trans athletes who won the Women's State Pole Vault title.
The judge who ruled was Judge Melissa Dubose of Rhode Island's U.S. District Court, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden just before taking office in January.
Dubose denied Libby's claim for a preliminary injunction on Friday, reflecting the will of the majority of Maine home members as he controlled process house speaker Ryan Fecto and imposed sanctions.
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After all Maine district judges refused to take it, Dubose predominately sided the suit.
Juryers John C. Nivison, John A. Woodcock, Lance E. Walker, Karen F. Wolf, Stacey D. Neumann and Nancy Tolen signed the recusal order shortly after the case was first filed. There was no reason.
So the incident went to Dubose, Rhode Island.
The main girl involved in the Trans Athlete Battle reveals how state policies hurt her childhood and sports career
Libby is “disappointed” by the ruling, but will appeal it and will take the case to the Court of Appeal and, potentially, the US Supreme Court.
“I certainly don't leave the stones in the flip by getting my constituents their voices and voting,” Libby told Fox News Digital.
Libby represents 9,000 members in Maine's 90th District and was unable to speak or vote in the state legislature for 62 days.
This gave her the opportunity to vote for the state's six-month budget and proposed a bill to expand access to mental health resources for residents.
With her denunciation in place, Libby prevents her from voting in the House or speaking in the House of Representatives about a bill that adds transport to women's sports to the state constitution.
Her colleagues will vote for the Democratic majority bill after being passed by a mere simple majority in the House on Thursday, but will require a two-thirds of majority in both rooms before going before voters. If passed, the state's constitution codifies the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA), which protects the right of transgender athletes to compete against opposite-sex sports teams.
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“I can't vote for it,” Libby said.
In response, Libby's social media post plunged the state into an aggressive legal battle with President Donald Trump's administration over the issue of women's sports trans-athletes.
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the state for the continued rebellion of Trump's executive order “Exclude men from women's sports.” Maine has faced federal pressure over its refusal to comply with two federal investigations, a USDA freeze on funding and current litigation for the past two months.
The state's Democratic leaders, led by Gov. Janet Mills, fought back and filed their own lawsuit against Trump over a fundraising freeze. Another federal judge has already ruled that the USDA must remove the funds.
“I am pleased to go to court and litigate the issues being filed in this court complaint,” Mills told reporters Thursday.
A survey by the American Union of Parents found that of around 600 registered Maine voters, 63% said school sports participation should be based on biological sex, while 66% agreed that “it's fair to limit women's sports to biological women.”
The poll found that 60% of residents support a vote measure that restricts women and girls' participation in sports to biological women. This included 64% of parents with children under the age of 18 and 66% of parents.
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