Trump administration sues Maine over transgender athletes in girls sports
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a civil lawsuit against the state, days after the state refused to sign a resolution agreement.
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a civil lawsuit against the state, days after the state refused to sign a resolution agreement.
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a civil lawsuit against the state, days after the state refused to sign a resolution agreement.
The Trump administration announced a lawsuit against Maine바카라 게임 웹사이트s education department for allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls sports.
The lawsuit accuses the Maine Department of Education of violating Title IX, saying Maine is discriminating against women by allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls sports.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the lawsuit Wednesday during a press conference alongside former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines, who has emerged as a public face of the opposition to transgender athletes in girls sports.
"What they have been through is horrific," Bondi said, talking about women in Maine.
The Department of Justice accuses Maine of "failure to comply with federal law," saying it will use "every legal tool available to remedy these violations and protect women's civil rights."
The suit cites two examples of violations. The following are quoted in the suit:
- In February 2025, a biological male won first place in pole vault at Maine's indoor Track and Field meet. He beat every female by a significant margin, qualifying him for regional championships - taking a spot from a female athlete. "Shame on him," Bondi said during the press conference.
- In February 2024, a biological male started competing in female ski and cross country races in Maine. He placed first in the women's 5K with a time that would have ranked 43rd among men.
A post about the pole vault athlete, including a photograph, was shared by Rep. Laurel Libby on Feb. 17, 2025, helping put Maine in the national spotlight about the issue.
Libby was on stage for Wednesday's press conference with Bondi, along with several other people from Maine.
The DOJ is seeking an injunction against Maine, exploring retroactively pulling funding that Maine has received in the past and seeking to get titles awarded to female athletes who competed against biological males.
U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon also spoke, calling it a "weighty development" against Maine. "Maine continues to willfully violate Title IX and strip the civil rights of women in the state," she said.
The debate over whether Maine should follow state law or federal came to a head on Feb. 21, when Gov. Janet Mills got into a heated exchange with President Donald Trump during a meeting of the nation's governors at the White House. Trump said the state would not receive federal funding if it did not comply with . Mills said she has been complying with state and federal law, and told Trump: "We'll see you in court."
On April 11, the Maine Attorney General's Office sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights saying the Maine AG and Maine Department of Education would not sign a Resolution Agreement to issue a directive forbidding schools from allowing transgender students who were assigned male at birth to participate in girls' sports and declared "we are at an impasse." The case was then referred to the Department of Justice and the Education Department said that same day it would begin a proceeding to try and stop the Maine DOE from receiving federal K-12 education funding, including formula and discretionary grants.
Bondi read the letter from Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey during the press conference Wednesday in which Frey said they were at an impasse.