Carr Fights for Parental Rights in School

ATLANTA, GA - Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr has filed an amicus brief to defend the constitutional rights of a mother whose public school deliberately hid efforts to "socially transition" her child.

"This is not about just one parent - it's about all parents and protecting their rights to direct their child's care," said Carr. "For any school official to secretly 'transition' a student is not just unconstitutional - it's unconscionable. The classroom must be preserved for education, not indoctrination."

In 2021, Aurora Regino's daughter, A.S., was a fifth-grade student at Sierra View Elementary School in Chico, California, when she began to experience anxiety and depression. School officials allowed and encouraged her to "socially transition" to a boy without Regino's permission or consent. The school's counselor even advised A.S. not to tell her mother and suggested confiding in another family member instead. As the school year went on, A.S.'s feelings about being a boy lessened, amplifying her stress and anxiety since, by that time, her school community viewed her as a boy.

Regino filed a lawsuit against the school district, claiming her constitutional rights were violated under the district's flawed policy to not inform parents of such decisions unless given express permission by the student. Carr and other attorneys general previously filed a brief in support of Regino's case - asking the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse a district court's dismissal. The Ninth Circuit agreed and remanded the case back to the district court. After reviewing the case again, the district court ruled once more in favor of the school - leading to this latest filing by the attorneys general.

As stated in the brief, "Schools across the nation have adopted similar policies, shutting parents out of the decision-making process whenever a student declines to authorize disclosure. Though the policies vary in content, all impair parents' fundamental right to be involved in important decisions regarding their children's mental health and well-being. Here, the district court failed to recognize that this right is deeply rooted in this Nation's history and tradition and is therefore protected by the Due Process Clause. This Court should correct this error and reverse."

Along with Carr, the attorneys general of the following states also joined in filing this brief: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Montana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.

Find a copy of the brief here .