The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed one transgender student to continue using the boys’ bathroom at a South Carolina high school.
The highest court refused, for now, to weigh in on the matter, instead leaving an August decision in place from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals to allow the ninth grader, identified in court documents as John Doe, to continue using the boys’ bathroom while the lawsuit continues. The appeals court had paused the case after the Supreme Court agreed to take up another case related to the rights of transgender youth, West Virginia v. B.P.J., that considers the legality of state bans on transgender girls from participating on female sports teams. Arguments in the case will be heard in October.
Doe, a 14-year-old student, brought the suit against South Carolina and the state’s educational departments last year after being harassed and suspended by school officials for using the bathroom that aligned with his gender identity.
In August, South Carolina had asked the Supreme Court for an expedited emergency ruling to block the Fourth Circuit’s decision.
Six of the justices denied that request, though Justices Clarence Thomas, Sam Alito and Neil Gorsuch noted they would have granted South Carolina’s request to block the student.
