Puyallup wrestler sues school district over Title IX and assault claims

A 16-year-old Rogers High School wrestler, Kallie Keeler, and her mother have filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Tacoma seeking an injunction against the school district, state education officials, and the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association. The lawsuit alleges that policies allowing transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports violate Title IX.

The legal action follows an incident in December 2025, during which Keeler alleges she was sexually assaulted by a transgender opponent during a wrestling match. While Pierce County prosecutors declined to file criminal charges against the accused athlete due to insufficient evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, school officials face separate legal scrutiny. Principal Jason Smith and athletic coordinator Peter Collins were charged in Pierce County District Court for allegedly failing to comply with Washington’s mandatory reporting law, which requires reporting alleged assaults within 48 hours.

Attorneys for Keeler, representing her through the Alliance Defending Freedom, are seeking to have the student removed from her current school environment, arguing that administration failed to take meaningful action to protect or investigate her claims.