SEATTLE (AP) — The Washington state Supreme Court has dismissed a defamation case brought by Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal against his election opponent who stated Reykdal championed a policy that teaches “sexual positions to fourth graders.”
The court ruled 6-3 that Reykdal failed to prove the statement as “demonstrably false.” His challenger Maia Espinoza made the statement in the state voter guide mailed out to all registered voters.
The court initially ruled in August that Reykdal did not have the legal grounds to succeed in the defamation case, and a written order released last week elaborated on the reasoning behind the ruling.
Espinoza’s statement refers to a book titled “It’s Perfectly Normal” which is listed among curricula the state has approved for fourth and fifth graders, and contains cartoon images of a couple having sex.
The 3 dissenting judges argued that the public school agency does not approve or recommend any particular curriculum for use, it only reviews to see if curricula meet state standards. There is no evidence that any school districts will actually choose to use the book, and they thought Reykdal met the standard for defamation.
The statement explaining the ruling says “It is unlikely but truthful that the policy could result in unintentionally exposing fourth graders to depictions of, and thus ‘teaching’ them, different sexual positions.”