Maine judges' mass recusal in trans sports case raises unanswered questions, legal expert says

Federal judges in Maine said they were compelled by their code of ethics to recuse themselves from a case brought forth by Maine GOP state Rep. Laurel Libby.

Libby, R-Bangor, is challenging her censure in the state legislature, which was issued in response to her opposition to transgender athletes competing in women's high school sports.

"The Judges of the District of Maine independently concluded that they are compelled by the Code of Conduct for United States Judges to recuse themselves because an employee of the District of Maine is involved in or directly impacted by the controversy underlying this litigation," Walker said. "The case will remain in the District of Maine but has been specially assigned to judges in the District of Rhode Island."

"It seems like there was a reasonable explanation for those judges to recuse, that they all did have a close relationship with someone related to the athlete," said Carrie Campbell Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network. Severino said, when asked about the possible familial link: "My concern now is - how has this next judge been chosen? Because there are lots of questions about whether this judge is actually able to be impartial in the case."

Due to the judges' recusal, Biden-appointed Judge Melissa DuBose of the District of Rhode Island will now oversee the case. 

In 2021, DuBose signed a letter alongside a slew of other Rhode Island judges, ensuring the LGBTQ community, racial minorities "and all under-represented communities" that "Rhode Island's courts are their courts." The letter followed a rally of thousands on the state House steps protesting police brutality.

Severino said it was "hard to imagine" that DuBose would be able to provide a fair trial in Libby's case, which centers on highly contentious LGBTQ issues.

"It's not clear to me how it was decided it was going to go to Rhode Island, as opposed to another jurisdiction nearby. There are other adjacent states the case could theoretically go to," Severino pointed out. "Now that it has been moved, there are further concerns about the ability of this judge to be impartial."

Libby declined to comment for this article, citing ongoing litigation. Maine House Speaker Ryan Fecteau, D-Biddeford, who is a defendant in Libby's case, also cited the same reason for not wanting to comment. Maine House Clerk Robert Hunt, another defendant, did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.