Judge Could Decide To Halt Controversial Temecula Valley USD Policies

TEMECULA, CA — A lawsuit aimed at overturning two controversial policies in the Temecula Valley Unified School District will likely proceed despite the district's attempt to get it thrown out of court, a judge ruled last week. That judge is now scheduled to hear arguments this week about whether the district must halt the policies while the case winds through the judicial system.

In his Feb. 15 tentative ruling, Judge Eric A. Keen indicated he will likely allow the case of Mae M. v. Komrosky to go forward. The case, brought forward in August by a coalition of students, teachers and parents, was filed after the Christian-conservative TVUSD governing board majority passed a resolution in December 2022 to ban books, text and discussion of anything it deemed objectionable. Critical race theory was banned districtwide, while racism, discrimination and sex were identified as topics requiring whitewashing or elimination from curriculums.

In October, the lawsuit was amended to also include a complaint about the governing board's August approval of a policy requiring parental notification about transgender and gender-nonconforming students. Critics argue the policy is illegal under state law and puts some kids at risk of abuse. The policy requires the TVUSD to notify parents if their kids want to be identified by a gender other than what is shown on official records. This includes students who want to use names different from their legal names or use pronouns that don't align with their biological sex per official records. Murrieta Valley Unified School District has a copycat policy.

Both policies were both adopted by the TVUSD board’s conservative majority — Dr. Joseph Komrosky, Jennifer Wiersma and Danny Gonzalez. Board members Allison Barclay and Steven Schwartz were opposed. Gonzalez resigned his board seat in December; his replacement will be decided by Temecula voters later this year.

The next step in the lawsuit is a hearing on the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction. If granted, the preliminary injunction will block the district from implementing the two policies while Mae M. v. Komrosky winds through the judicial system. At 8:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 23, in Riverside County Superior Court, Judge Keen is scheduled to take up the matter.

The plaintiffs’ legal team, Public Counsel and Ballard Spahr, with support from the California Teachers Association, argue that California’s Constitution and statutes guarantee TVUSD students access to a "fact-based education free from discrimination."

The plaintiffs have support from California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the ACLU. The plaintiffs also claim backing from other civil rights groups, as well as Penguin Random House, PEN America, along with other freedom of expression advocates.

"We appreciate Judge Keen’s thoughtful analysis in his tentative ruling," plaintiffs' attorney Amanda Mangaser Savage said in a released statement.

The attorney called the two board policies "unlawful" and said the TVUSD should "redirect its attention to what matters most: the provision of an education free from censorship ... ."

The TVUSD has previously declined to comment on pending litigation.