JACKSON, Miss. — A Mississippi school district violated a lesbian student’s rights by banning her from bringing her girlfriend to the prom, a federal judge ruled Tuesday, but he stopped short of forcing the district to hold the event.
U.S. District Judge Glen H. Davidson denied an American Civil Liberties Union request for a preliminary injunction that would have forced the Itawamba County school district to sponsor the April 2 prom and allow Constance McMillen to escort her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo.
Davidson did say he will hold a trial on the issue later, but he did not set a date and any ruling would likely come too late to force the district to hold the prom when it was originally scheduled.
Davidson’s order says the district violated McMillen’s constitutional rights by denying her request to bring her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo, and ACLU Mississippi legal director Kristy Bennett called that a victory.
She said Davidson’s order allows McMillen to amend her petition within 30 days, meaning she could sue for damages because she couldn’t get the prom reinstated.
Davidson said he denied the injunction request because a private prom parents are planning will serve the same purpose as the school prom. He wrote in his ruling that “requiring defendants to step back into a sponsorship role at this late date would only confuse and confound the community on the issue.”
School officials said in court they decided to call off the prom at Itawamba Agricultural High School because McMillen’s challenge to the rules had caused disruptions.
Ben Griffith, the school district’s attorney, said his clients were pleased with Davidson’s ruling.
The 715-student high school is in Fulton, a town of about 4,000 in rural north Mississippi. The entire county school district has 3,588 students.
