Loudoun County Schools Misused Authority In Trans Locker Room Case, AG Says

ASHBURN, VA — Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares on Monday accused Loudoun County Public Schools of a "disturbing misuse of authority" following his investigation into an incident involving a transgender student's use of a boys locker room.

In a news release, Miyares said LCPS initiated a retaliatory Title IX investigation against three male students at Stone Bridge High School after they expressed religious objections to a district policy that allows access to sex-separated facilities based on gender identity.

"Rather than safeguarding the constitutional rights of all students, LCPS appears to be punishing those who hold and express faith-based views," Miyares said, adding the case will now move to the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice for further investigation.

Miyares began his investigation in May after WJLA reported that the three male students were under investigation after they said they were uncomfortable with a transgender student, who identifies as male, changing clothes in the boys locker room.

The transgender student also used a cell phone to record the interaction, reports said. According to LCPS policy, video and audio recordings are prohibited in school locker rooms.

"Students who express legitimate concerns about sharing locker rooms with individuals of the opposite biological sex should not be subjected to harassment or discrimination claims," Gov. Glenn Youngkin said after Miyares launched the investigation into the district.

In a statement sent to Patch last month, LCPS officials said the WJLA report had misleading claims "presented in a biased manner from a single source."

"To be absolutely clear: Loudoun County Public Schools would not investigate or discipline students based on their personal opinions, thoughts, or beliefs, provided those expressions do not violate policies prohibiting hate speech, discriminatory language, threats, or other forms of harmful or disruptive conduct," the school system stated. "However, LCPS does investigate and may take disciplinary action when student behavior violates LCPS’ Student Rights & Responsibilities Handbook for Families and Student Code of Conduct."

School officials also said it was "disheartening" to see Miyares criticize the district solely based on the media report, adding that its policies are based on state and federal law that allow transgender students to use school bathrooms according to their gender identity.

Stone Bridge High School was also the site of one of two 2021 sexual assaults by a male student that got LCPS national attention. After the first assault at Stone Bridge High School in May 2021, officials transferred the boy to Broad Run High School. In October 2021, the boy sexually assaulted a victim at Broad Run High School, according to court records.

The student behind the sexual assaults was the only person sentenced in those cases. The student was sentenced to a residential treatment facility, but Fox5 reported in July 2024 that a judge ordered his release when he was 18.

In early 2025, a case against former Superintendent Scott Ziegler, who was fired by the previous school board, was dropped. The charge of violating the state’s conflict of interest law for retaliation against special education teacher Erin Brooks was the only result of Miyares's investigation of LCPS. However, the attorney general's team ultimately requested the charge be dropped after a judge set aside a conviction and sought a new trial.

Wayde Byard, a former LCPS spokesperson charged in the investigation, was found not guilty and has since released a book titled The Battle for Loudoun County: Inside the Culture War Between a ‘Woke’ School Board and the Radical Right.

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