22<\/div>SHARES<\/span><\/div>

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The \u2062mother of a\u200c Virginia teen<\/a> who was sex-trafficked twice after her school\u2062 concealed her newly asserted\u2063 gender identity\u200b has filed a groundbreaking \u2062lawsuit against school staff\u200d and a \u200cMaryland \u200cpublic \u200ddefender who alleged parental \u201cmisgendering\u201d \u2063and abuse. The complaint<\/a> was filed Aug. 22 in the Western\u200d District of Virginia court on behalf of\u2064 Michele Blair by the Child and \u2062Parental Rights Campaign<\/a> (CPRC) with support from the \u200b Foundation Against \u200cIntolerance and Racism<\/a> \u2062(FAIR).<\/p>\n

It alleges that the defendants\u2019 actions\u2014first in withholding vital information about \u2062the girl\u2019s gender identification and related \u2062assault in the boys\u2019 bathroom, then later by falsely alleging abuse to deprive her mother of \u200bcustody\u2014resulted in the child\u2019s ordeal at the hands of sexual predators not once, but twice. \u2063 Blair v. Appomattox<\/em> et al.\u200b <\/em>will set\u2062 critical\u200b precedents in two areas of roiling national debate: parental notification of gender \u200ctransition in schools and parental custody \u200brelating to gender identity.<\/p>\n

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Public Schools Hide Kids\u2019 Dysphoria<\/h2>\n
More<\/a> \u200b than 10\u2064 million \u2063children \u200bthis fall returned\u200c to public schools<\/a> that conceal\u2064 kids\u2019 transgender identities from parents.\u2064 A California case<\/a> \u2063 recently settled \u2062for $100,000 is\u200c one of several lawsuits<\/a> filed by parents<\/a> whose \u2064children were secretly<\/a> transitioned in school.<\/p>\n
The Blair suit, however, is\u200b groundbreaking for displaying the \u2063liability schools \u200drisk when secret-keeping results in tragedy. Safely back in her \u2063loving home for more than a \u200dyear \u2064now, Sage still \u200dsuffers persistent\u200b nightmares and \u2062panic\u2063 attacks. She is receiving intensive therapy for \u2062 complex<\/a> PTSD<\/a>, her mother reports, a diagnosis related to prolonged \u2064helplessness \u200damid extreme trauma.<\/p>\n
The reason for \u2063the secrecy that prefaced her ordeal no \u2062longer exists: \u200dSage has embraced her sex, reflecting<\/a> in hindsight that she had \u201cjust wanted to make friends\u201d at her\u200d new school\u200b by claiming to be a boy.<\/p>\n
How gender identity relates to \u201c abuse<\/a>\u201d is fiercely debated nationwide. In states including California, \u200b pending legislation<\/a> categorizes parental non-affirmation<\/a> of\u200d gender \u2063dysphoria as abuse. The political cost<\/a> of angering parents of all backgrounds<\/a> has begun to affect 2024<\/a> campaigns, as\u200b demonstrated by\u2063 California Gov. Gavin \u200cNewsom\u2019s\u200b unexpected \u2064 veto<\/a> of \u200cone of these bills.<\/p>\n
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In 2023, \u200bVirginia lawmakers debated \u201c Sage\u2019s Law<\/a>,\u201d \u2064requiring\u2063 parental\u2062 notification in schools and clarifying that raising a \u200dchild according \u2064to\u200c his or her \u2062sex may not<\/em><\/a> be considered abuse. Virginia\u200b Senate\u200d Democrats killed<\/a> Sage\u2019s Law, and it has become<\/a> a campaign<\/a> issue<\/a>. In fact,\u2063 the \u2062transgender delegate<\/a> \u200d who vehemently opposed<\/a> House\u200b Bill 2432 \u2062is now facing a veteran anti-trafficking<\/a> leader<\/a> \u200dchampioning the bill.<\/p>\n
Given the lack<\/a> of evidence<\/a> for benefits<\/a> to minors<\/a> from \u201cgender-affirming care\u201d and the\u200b tremendous<\/a> risk<\/a> and<\/a> potential\u2063 for regret<\/a>, \u200dthe question of what \u200dconstitutes \u2063\u201c abuse<\/a>\u201d and grounds for state intervention is urgent.<\/p>\n
\u201cSage\u2019s\u2062 story is an absolute tragedy that no child should\u200b ever have to endure. But\u2062 what is \u200deven worse is that it was entirely preventable,\u201d said attorney Vernadette Broyles in announcing\u200b the lawsuit. \u201cSchool administrators and public\u2062 officials alike decided that their\u200d authority superseded\u2063 that of\u2064 her parents\u2026This is\u2063 about who has\u2063 the best interests of the \u200bchild\u2063 at heart, \u2064who knows that child better\u2062 than anyone else, \u2064and ultimately \u2062who must\u2063 make important\u200b personal decisions for a\u2062 child.\u201d<\/p>\n
An \u200b\u2018Entirely Preventable\u2019 Nightmare<\/h2>\n
Sage\u2019s heartbreaking<\/a> \u2064story was documented in The Federalist<\/a> last winter, when Delegate Dave LaRock introduced Sage\u2019s Law<\/a> \u200bin the Virginia General Assembly. She was a 14-year-old freshman at Appomattox County High School \u200din 2021 \u2063when her school allegedly \u200dreinforced\u2064 her \u200cclaim to be male and concealed it from her \u200bparents. She \u200bwas severely bullied, then \u2062assaulted in the male bathroom school employees told her to use, according to the complaint.<\/p>\n
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Sage ran\u200d away,\u2064 leaving\u2062 a \u2062note expressing fear of further\u2064 violence. She was caught by a predator who drugged and raped \u2064her, then drove \u200cher into Washington, DC, where other men sex-trafficked her into\u2062 Maryland.<\/p>\n
When the FBI rescued Sage in Baltimore eight days later, a public defender \u2064alleged\u2062 \u201cmisgendering\u201d and\u200c abuse\u2062 at home, so \u2063a judge<\/a> withheld custody from Sage\u2019s loving parents\u2064 for more than two\u2062 months. Instead, the judge ordered Sage\u200b to a Maryland state home in \u2062male quarters, where she was assaulted again, the\u200b lawsuit says. Sage fled and was once\u200d again caught by a predator \u2062and raped, drugged, starved, and tortured, this time for \u200cmonths before law enforcement found her in Texas.<\/p>\n
Seeking Justice for Sage<\/h2>\n
The \u206455-page complaint lays out nine causes of\u2062 action,\u200d seeking \u201ccompensatory and\u2064 punitive damages\u201d plus \u200dcourt costs for \u201ctortious interference\u200d with the parent-child relationship, conspiracy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, professional malpractice, and other rights\u201d resulting \u200din extreme harm to Sage and her mother. The first four causes of action target<\/a> Appomattox County High School counselors Dena \u200cOlsen and Avery Via, Superintendent Annette \u2063Bennett, and the \u2062school board.<\/p>\n
The remaining causes contain shocking charges against\u2062 Maryland public defender Aneesa Khan \u2063and the school counselors of malpractice, perjury, and conspiracy\u2062 \u201caimed at depriving\u2062 Mrs. Blair \u200cof custody of her daughter and keeping [Sage] \u200d in \u200dMaryland to be affirmed\u2063 in a male identity.\u201d The complaint alleges the trio knowingly\u200b presented \u200bfalse testimony of abuse to Judge \u200dRobert Kershaw, and \u200cthat their success in convincing \u2062him \u200bto \u200bkeep Sage \u2063from her parents resulted\u2062 in her \u200csubsequent abuse in a state home and in her \u200csecond, months-long \u2064victimization.<\/p>\n
Lawsuit: Hiding Info Led \u2064to Sex\u2063 Trafficking<\/h2>\n
The Appomattox defendants, contends the lawsuit, concealed both the\u2064 school\u2019s unauthorized \u201cmental health\u2062 intervention\u201d \u2064affirming Sage as male and\u200c the resultant student \u201cbullying, verbal, physical and sexual assault.\u201d It alleges they failed to take corrective action\u200b or to\u200c initiate a Title \u2063IX sexual harassment investigation, instead directing the \u200cgirl into the male bathroom, where she was assaulted.<\/em><\/p>\n
Among the most damning allegations \u200bis the counselors\u2019 \u2062egregious disregard \u2063for Sage\u2019s history of trauma\u2064 and\u200b mental health concerns. Michele had provided\u2063 these \u2063to the school\u200d expecting they would work\u2063 closely with\u2063 her\u200c like Sage\u2019s previous\u2064 school had, she said<\/a> in testimony to Virginia\u2019s \u200blegislature.<\/p>\n
Sage lost her father as a baby and had been through six foster\u200c homes by \u200bage two\u200b when Michele, \u200cher biological \u200bgrandmother,\u200c adopted her. Michele recalls<\/a> Sage\u2019s unusual silence as a child: \u2064she had learned not\u200b to cry because adults didn\u2019t respond.<\/p>\n
With\u200d years of love, she developed into \u200ca happy\u200c child. Then a wave of mental health issues \u2062emerged with puberty, compounded by Covid isolation. As a trained \u2064Virginia \u2062Court\u2063 Appointed Special Advocate\u200b (CASA<\/a>), Michele\u2063 sought professional help for Sage, \u2062including \u200bhospitalization the summer before\u2064 she entered high school.<\/p>\n
Despite this known vulnerability, contends the lawsuit, Appomattox kept Sage\u2019s parents in the dark even once reports surfaced of\u2063 assault in the boys\u2019 bathroom. \u2064School personnel met repeatedly with Sage alone, culminating in an emotional\u2064 session on August 25, 2021 where they\u200c threatened \u200bshe could be \u2062sued if\u2063 she \u200dmade false allegations against\u200c the boys, the lawsuit says. \u2063Sage suffered\u200d a \u201cpsychotic break,\u201d alleges the lawsuit, and ran \u2063away that \u2062night into the nightmare that followed.<\/p>\n
Counselors, Public Defender \u2018Conspired\u2019<\/h2>\n
The \u200cnight Sage was \u200crescued in Baltimore, she spent hours alone\u200c at the hospital undergoing a difficult rape exam into the wee hours of the morning. As\u2063 she was being \u200bdriven to a detention\u2064 center afterward, the complaint alleges, Sage asked\u2064 that her mother be called \u200dto\u200b take\u200d her home. This\u200b request\u2062 was\u200d denied and she was locked in solitary detention. Later that day, Khan was claiming in court\u2063 that the Blairs were abusive and Sage did not want to \u200bgo home.<\/p>\n
Among the disturbing facts alleged are sudden, mysterious phone\u200d calls originating from self-described \u201cmandated reporters\u201d \u200bto the Appomattox County child abuse hotline hours after Sage \u200cwas found on \u200dSeptember\u2063 3<\/em>, \u201cbefore her \u2064rescue and \u200blocation\u2063 were known to anyone but law enforcement, Mrs. Blair and Ms. Khan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other reports followed, claiming Michele \u200bhad subjected Sage \u2063to \u201c\u2018conversion\u200d therapy\u2019 aimed at changing [Sage\u2019s] gender identity.\u201d This was \u201cfactually \u2064impossible,\u201d as Michele allegedly only became aware of \u200cthe \u2063gender identity shift the night \u2062Sage ran away. \u2062In fact, asserts the complaint, Khan conspired \u200cwith \u200cOlsen and Via to \u201cfacilitat[e] \u2064the \u2062initiation of child protective services investigations in Virginia and \u2062Maryland.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u200d are further allegations of \u2064grievous cruelty to a traumatized young\u2063 rape victim: \u2063Sage was never\u200c informed her parents\u2064 were waiting for\u2064 her\u200d right \u200boutside the jail; Khan convinced Sage to lie to the \u200dcourt that her \u200cparents had abused her; Khan told\u2062 the child \u200dher mother no longer wanted her, and withheld all the gifts\u2064 and loving letters Michele sent\u2064 to Sage at \u200bthe Maryland children\u2019s home.<\/p>\n
These \u201cextreme and \u2062outrageous\u2063 actions intentionally aimed at harming\u2026Mrs. Blair\u2019s \u2062parental\u2062 relationship \u200dwith [Sage]\u201d\u200c were allegedly \u201call because Ms. Khan believed that [Sage] must be affirmed as male,\u201d the lawsuit\u200c says. According to a text from Sage to a friend, Khan had the \u2063stated ambition<\/a> of taking her case \u200bto the Supreme Court.<\/p>\n
Ideology \u200bTrumps Care for \u200bTrauma<\/h2>\n
Broyles<\/a> stated<\/a> to The Federalist Radio Hour that \u201cideology overwhelmed everything we know\u2064 about trauma,\u200d about sex abuse victims, about \u200dchildren needing their parents and \u200bhow they\u2062 should be restored\u2064 [to them] \u2064immediately\u2026unless there\u2019s\u200b actual\u2062 proof of\u2026abuse.\u201d\u2064 Instead,\u2064 a\u200c 100-pound, deeply wounded girl\u200b with \u2064no criminal \u200drecord was jailed \u2062for several \u200cdays, \u200bthen housed with troubled teenage boys, \u201cwhere\u200d she was exposed to drugs, further sexual harassment and assault.\u201d<\/p>\n
Broyles reasoned<\/a> Sage was treated \u201cas if she\u2019s a juvenile delinquent\u2026in order to maintain control.\u201d \u200cThe legal maneuvering\u200d in Maryland lasted more than two\u200c months,\u2062 with Judge Kershaw \u2064holding multiple hearings that \u200cdelayed Sage\u2019s return to\u200d Virginia required under the Interstate Compact for Juveniles (ICJ<\/a>).<\/p>\n
Khan\u2019s alleged\u2062 narrative of \u200cabandonment fell on receptive \u200cground: Sage\u2063 told<\/a> Michele months later how much she\u2019d missed her,\u200b but tried not to, because\u200d she \u201cknew\u201d\u200c Michele didn\u2019t want her. The shame and unworthiness felt by victims of sexual exploitation is well-documented<\/a>. \u201cTrauma-related\u200b shame<\/a> is an irrational \u200dand biological response\u2026connected to the \u200bspecific \u200creactions of denial, hiding, \u200band running away,\u201d explains\u200c one study<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A Critical Precedent\u2064 on School\u200c Secrecy<\/h2>\n
The school \u200dsecrecy \u200dthat allegedly facilitated Sage\u2019s ordeal is an intense national<\/a> debate. In Virginia, \u200dleftist school boards like\u2062 Fairfax<\/a> County<\/a>\u2019s\u2063 are defying<\/a> Gov. Glenn \u200cYoungkin\u2019s new model<\/a> policies requiring parental\u200b notification and use of privacy facilities by sex, not gender identity. California<\/a> and New Jersey<\/a> are suing their\u200c own \u2062constituents, at constituent expense, for the right\u200d to deceive them about their own children.<\/p>\n
Parents<\/a> \u200c are fighting<\/a> back<\/a>, and surveys<\/a> show that even left-leaning<\/a> voters overwhelmingly<\/a> favor parental\u200d notification\u2064 in schools. Yet many Democrat politicians<\/a> fiercely oppose \u200bit. They are\u200d backstopped<\/a> \u2062 by a\u200b billion-dollar<\/a> \u200c industry that \u200cprofits from pediatric transition and funds<\/a> \u2062pro-secrecy \u2064 activists<\/a> in schools and \u200b legislatures<\/a>, facilitating access<\/a> to\u2063 lifelong\u200b patients.<\/p>\n
Significantly,\u200d records indicate Appomattox staff followed the same principle of instant,\u2063 uncritical,\u2064 and secret \u2062affirmation dictated by \u200bLGBT activist<\/a>\u2013 crafted<\/a> model<\/a> policies that have infiltrated\u200b thousands<\/a> of schools. The \u201cSchools in Transition\u201d model policy insists \u201caffirming\u200d a \u2062child\u2019s gender\u2063 identity is in a child\u2019s \u200cbest\u2064 interest,\u201d and that school personnel have \u201cunique insight into the student\u2019s needs\u200b without the \u2064biases parents \u200dcan or \u200care perceived \u200cto have.\u201d<\/p>\n
An\u2063 Essential Precedent on Children\u2019s\u2064 Rights<\/h2>\n
This raises the critical\u2064 question: does refusal to affirm a child as \u200dthe\u2063 opposite sex constitute \u201c abuse<\/a>\u201d and grounds for removal from \u2062parental custody, as Khan advocated\u2063 in court? Activists are \u2064training legal<\/a> officials<\/a> and law<\/a> \u2064students that it\u2064 does.<\/p>\n
A bill \u200cCalifornia\u2019s \u200blegislature\u200b passed would transfer<\/a> children to\u200b state custody where, as Sage experienced, the \u2062risk of actual \u200cabuse \u200b skyrockets<\/a>. \u2062Simultaneously, by dictating that foster parents \u201caffirm\u201d kids\u2019 sexual identities, California is reducing<\/a> \u200cthe homes available to\u200d needy \u2063foster kids.<\/p>\n
In some states, family custody<\/a> is already<\/a> decided<\/a> on this basis. While all 50 \u2062states are bound by \u2064the ICJ<\/a> governing the return\u2062 of \u200drunaway minors, some have passed\u200c \u201crefuge\u201d laws<\/a> preventing \u2062the return of children who have run or been taken across state lines \u2064for \u201cgender-affirming \u200dcare.\u201d<\/p>\n
This wildly aggressive\u200b intrusion<\/a> \u2062 into\u2063 parental<\/a> rights is remarkable \u200dnot only for the destruction<\/a> it \u2062has\u200c wrought<\/a>,\u2063 but for the absence of justification. As other nations<\/a> have \u2062concluded, there is a\u2063 profound lack<\/a> of scientific\u2063 evidence<\/a> \u2063to support \u2064 pediatric<\/a> gender \u2063transitions. And tens of thousands<\/a> of detransitioners<\/a> now bitterly regret<\/a> the lifelong \u200d medical<\/a> consequences<\/a> of adults<\/a> affirming<\/a> their childhood choices.<\/p>\n
The\u2064 fundamental question\u2063 in\u2064 Blair\u2064 v. Appomattox et al. \u2063 <\/em>is whether fit parents or the state rightfully decide a child\u2019s \u200dbest interests. Sage\u2019s allegations show the\u2063 devastating potential harm to children when ideologically captured \u200binstitutions wrest control of\u2063 a child\u2019s life from parents. \u200cWhile the case\u2062 will \u200dset\u200d critical\u200b precedents in schools and courts, it\u2064 also highlights the pressing need\u2064 for laws reinforcing \u200bthe right of parents to protect their \u200dchildren\u200c from\u200d state overreach.<\/p>\n
Michele says she\u2019s filing this lawsuit in the \u200c\u201chope\u2026that\u2064 no parent ever has \u200dto go through\u200b what [she] did to protect their child.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michele Blair, the mother of a Virginia teen, has filed a groundbreaking lawsuit against school staff and a Maryland public defender. The teen was sex-trafficked twice after the school concealed their gender identity. The complaint, filed on Aug. 22 in the Western District of Virginia court, alleges parental “misgendering” and abuse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":786,"featured_media":2043553,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2043552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2043552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/786"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2043552"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2043552\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2043553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2043552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2043552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2043552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}