(The Center Square) — A Maine GOP lawmaker who was censured by Democrats over her comments about a transgender student has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the move that has blocked her from voting on bills or speaking on legislative matters.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Maine, alleges that the state House of Representatives vote to censure state Rep. Laurel Libby, R-Auburn, after she shared photos of a transgender Maine high school student in a Facebook post violated her constitutional rights.
Several of Libby’s 9,000 House District 90 constituents signed onto the lawsuit, named House Speaker Ryan Fectaeu and other top Democrats. It calls on a federal judge to restore her legislative authority.
In the 29-page complaint, Libby’s attorneys said Fecteau’s claims that her social media post threatened child safety “is irreconcilable with the fact that her speech addresses what occurred at a public competition with publicly available photos already on the internet.”
“There is nothing illegal or threatening about Rep. Libby’s posts, and at no point has she enabled or encouraged any attacks on any individual student,” the complaint reads. “Instead, she has focused on the state government’s unfair policy and the rights of girls to compete fairly and safely in high school athletics.”
Libby was censured by House Democrats in a 75-70 vote because she posted a photo of the student last month and criticized Maine’s laws. Under legislative rules, Libby is barred from voting on bills or speaking on the House floor until she offers a public apology. She has refused to apologize or take down the Facebook post.
The lawsuit also claims the censure violated her First Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment rights because her social media posts were constitutionally protected speech on a matter of public discourse. It argues that the censure vote barring the GOP lawmaker from speaking or voting on the House floor “prevents Rep. Libby from doing her job, interferes with her ability to adequately perform her elected duties.”
“While legislatures have authority to discipline their members, stripping them of their voting rights is another matter,” Libby’s attorney wrote.
Fecteau has declined to comment on Libby’s legal challenge, citing the pending litigation. He and the other defendants will be represented by Attorney General Aaron Frey’s office.
In a separate statement, Libby accused Fecteau and other Democratic lawmakers of “canceling and silencing” her criticism of the state’s transgender policies, which she said are putting hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for Maine schools at risk.
“I have the constitutional right to speak out and my constituents have the right to full representation in the Maine House,” she said. “Biological males have no place in girls’ sports. Our girls have every right, under federal law, to fair competition in sports. We will not let them be erased by the Democrat majority advancing a woke progressive agenda.”
While Libby’s legal challenge was filed in federal court, it won’t be heard locally in Maine. On Wednesday, federal judges in Maine recused themselves from the case, which was referred to a U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, according to an order from Chief U.S. District Judge Lance Walker, who gave no reason for the recusal.
