GLOUCESTER, Va. — The American Civil Liberties Union said the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has denied the Gloucester school board's request for a rehearing after its transgender bathroom ban was ruled unconstitutional.
A three-judge panel previously ruled against the school board, saying former student Gavin Grimm's constitutional rights were violated when he was required to use restrooms that corresponded with his biological sex - female - or private bathrooms at his high school.
The panel upheld a decision from a federal judge in Norfolk who ruled last year that Grimm’s constitutional rights were violated.
Earlier this month, the Gloucester County School Board filed an en banc petition to have the entire 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals hear the case, which would have allowed the entire 4th Circuit to hear the case, rather than just the three-judge panel.
According to the ACLU of Virginia, that request on Tuesday was denied.
"Discrimination against trans students is discrimination on the basis of sex and it's illegal. Full stop," the ACLU said in a tweet.
Grimm’s lawsuit was once a federal test case that drew national attention.