A female high school wrestler in Washington urged the Supreme Court earlier this week to intervene in a lawsuit over the state’s laws allowing biological men to compete in women’s sports, as the high court could issue another key ruling about transgender sports policies months after its landmark June decision.
Kallie Keeler, a biological female wrestler, sued the Washington officials after she claimed she was sexually assaulted by a biological male fighter she competed against during a high school girls’ wrestling tournament, alleging the state’s policy allowing biological men to compete in women’s sports violates Title IX. Keeler, who is being represented by the conservative law firm Alliance Defending Freedom, asked a federal district court and federal appeals court to halt the policy or allow her to opt out of competing against male athletes without any penalty, but both lower courts denied those bids. The Supreme Court has been urged to grant her emergency petition, with Keeler’s lawyers framing it as a protection of her ability to compete safely in women’s sports while the lawsuit moves forward in federal court.
