Virginia School District Punishes Boys, Not Trans Student Who Filmed Them In Locker Room

Two Virginia high school boys have been suspended after expressing discomfort when a trans-identifying female student filmed them inside the boys’ locker room — a clear violation of school policy.

The incident took place at Stone Bridge High School in Loudoun County, where a biological female student, who identifies as male, was allowed to access the boys' locker room. The female student secretly recorded the boys as they questioned why a girl was in their locker room and later accused them of sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination.

Two Virginia high school boys have been suspended after expressing discomfort when a trans-identifying female student filmed them inside the boys’ locker room.

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Despite the fact that the recording itself violated school policy, Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) launched a Title IX investigation into the boys.

Now, those boys are facing serious punishment: 10 days of suspension, a no-contact order with the complainant and mandatory meetings with administrators to determine a "corrective action plan."

"I would say the first reaction was some anger, because we're just really concerned with all this stuff," Seth Wolfe, the father of one of the boys, told WJLA. "[We're] saddened by the decision-making process and how that went."

Renae Smith, the mother of the second student, told ABC she has already pulled her son from LCPS and moved out of state.

"[We're] absolutely floored that they came back and branded my son responsible for sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination with no solid evidence whatsoever," Smith said. "We're talking about scarring him for life by a biased process that's supposed to protect fairness, but it's shocking. It's wrong, and it should terrify every single parent."

Smith and Wolfe say the message is clear: if you speak up against Loudoun’s Policy 8040 — which lets students choose locker rooms based on gender identity — you’ll be punished.

OutKick reached out to Loudoun County Public Schools for comment. A spokesperson responded: "It is the general practice of LCPS not to publicly discuss private student matters. I can state that the division has a comprehensive and objective process for Title IX investigations."

The U.S. Department of Education, however, sees things differently.

Department of Education Steps In After Loudoun County Schools Violate Title IX Directives

On Tuesday, the Department announced it is cutting federal funding to LCPS and four other Northern Virginia districts for violating Title IX. Specifically, the Department found the school systems in violation of federal civil rights law for "allowing students to occupy intimate facilities based on gender identity, not biological sex."

Those districts — which include Fairfax County, Prince William County, Alexandria City and Arlington — are now considered "high-risk" within the federal grant system. All federal funding will be delivered through reimbursement status only, meaning schools must front their own expenses and prove those expenditures were legal before receiving any money back.

"States and school districts cannot openly violate federal law while simultaneously receiving federal funding with no additional scrutiny," Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a release. "We have given these Northern Virginia School Divisions every opportunity to rectify their policies which blatantly violate Title IX."

Earlier this summer, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares referred the LCPS case to the Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. He found the school district’s actions to be "unlawful, discriminatory and retaliatory."

"This is just the latest example of what happens when school boards disregard common sense," Miyares said at the time. "The safety, dignity, and privacy of every student in Virginia should be non-negotiable. This is about safety and privacy, not political correctness — and it’s time Loudoun County recognized that."

As OutKick's Dan Zaksheske previously reported, Governor Glenn Youngkin also blasted the district for punishing the boys instead of holding the female student accountable for violating locker room policy.

"It’s deeply concerning to read reports of yet another incident in Loudoun County schools where members of the opposite sex are violating the privacy of students in locker rooms," Youngkin said. "Even more alarming, the victims of this violation are the ones being investigated — this is beyond belief."

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin blasted LCPC for punishing two male students after a trans student filmed them in their locker room.

(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

But while Youngkin and Miyares have been outspoken in their criticism of Loudoun County’s handling of the case, Democrat gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger has so far declined to take a position. WJLA reports that Spanberger’s team did not respond to multiple requests for comment about LCPS’s discipline of the boys or her stance on school bathroom and locker room policies. Her campaign instead issued a vague statement, saying only that "the safety of Virginia’s kids is Abigail’s top priority."

All of Virginia's kids, Abigail?

Because for the boys being punished, college applications are on the horizon, and their families fear these disciplinary records could follow them.

"What they're doing to our children is just despicable," Smith said.

All because they asked why a girl was in the boys' locker room.