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West Virginia Attorney General John McCuskey weighed in on his state’s upcoming Supreme Court case against trans athlete Becky Pepper-Jackson after 130 congressional Democrats filed an amicus brief for Pepper-Jackson.
Pepper-Jackson filed the West Virginia vs. BPJ lawsuit in July 2024 to challenge the state’s law, “The Save Women’s Sports Act,” to be able to compete at an all-girls high school in cross country and track and field. But the case must now be heard by the US Supreme Court, starting in January.
“The Save Women’s Sports Act is about making sports fair and safe for everyone involved. It’s not about banning anyone from competition. Biological males can compete against biological males, but not against biological females,” McCuskey said in a statement provided to Pakinomist Digital through the law firm Alliance Defending Freedom.
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“Women and girls have lost spots on sports teams, given up spots on championship podiums, and suffered injuries competing against bigger, faster and stronger men. This case is about preserving the hard-earned victories granted by Title IX and, more than anything, about protecting our female athletes.”
The West Virginia v. BPJ lawsuit was brought against the state of West Virginia by trans athlete Becky Pepper-Jackson, who initially obtained a preliminary injunction allowing the athlete to participate on the school’s sports team. The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the law violated Title IX and the Equal Protection Clause. Now the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the state’s appeal.
In a response card, the athlete’s mother, Heather Jackson, argued West Virginia law that prohibits transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports violates Title IX.
However, Title IX does not explicitly protect the right of biologically male transgender people to identify as female. The Trump administration and the West Virginia state government do not interpret Title IX to protect this right.
LEGAL DEFENSES TO PROTECT WOMEN’S SPORTS IN SCOTUS FIGHT OVER TRANS ATHLETES RESPOND TO ATTEMPTS TO DROP CASE
Becky Pepper-Jackson attends the Lambda Legal Liberty Awards on June 8, 2023 in New York City. (Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Lambda Legal)
Meanwhile 130 Democrats who have thrown their support behind Pepper-Jackson include nine senators and 121 members of the House.
The list of signatories features prominent figures on the party’s left, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-CortezDN.Y. and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. The list also includes House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Rep. Nancy Pelosi. The list does not include noted moderate Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., or Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y.
“Categorical bans — such as the bans in West Virginia and Idaho — undermine these protections and the ability of transgender students to be part of their school community,” the brief states.
The amicus brief also expressed support for another trans athlete, Lindsay Hecox, whose case will also be heard by the Supreme Court in January.
The Little v. Hecox lawsuit was originally filed by trans athlete Lindsay Hecox in 2020 when the athlete wanted to join the Boise State women’s cross country team and had the state’s law barring trans athletes from competing in women’s sports blocked.
Hecox was joined by an anonymous female biology student, Jane Doe, who was concerned about the potential of being exposed to the verification process for the sex dispute. The challenge was successful as a federal judge blocked Idaho state law.
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A 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals panel upheld a ban blocking the state law in 2023 before the Supreme Court agreed in July to hear the case. Hecox then asked the court last month to drop the challenge, claiming the athlete “therefore has decided to permanently retire and refrain from playing women’s sports at BSU or in Idaho.”
Hecox tried to have the case dismissed in September after the Supreme Court agreed in July to hear the case, but U.S. District Judge David Nye, appointed by the president Donald Trump in 2017 denied Hecox’s motion to dismiss the case.
