Juries in two separate civil trials in Fairfax County, Va., last month awarded a gay teacher and an LGBTQ-supportive parent a combined total of just over $1 million in damages from a conservative group and its leader accused in their lawsuits of falsely and maliciously linking the two to a “child abduction ring” and other illegal actions involving children.

The teacher, Robert Rigby Jr., and the parent, Vanessa Hall, have been active members for many years of Fairfax County Public Schools Pride, an organization of teachers, school administrators and parents that advocates for LGBTQ-supportive school policies.

Their respective lawsuits were filed last year against what they describe as a Republican-supportive political action committee or PAC called the Virginia Project and its founder and chairperson, David Gordon. The lawsuits say Gordon “is responsible for curating and managing TVP’s social media content, including its posts and comments on Twitter,” which has renamed itself as X.

“Beginning in early 2025, defendants amplified an ongoing harassment and intimidation campaign they previously launched against Mr. Rigby by and through TVP’s Twitter handle, @ProjectVirginia,” Rigby’s lawsuit states.

It adds that on Jan. 3, 2025, “defendants retweeted a post by Bill Ackman stating that ‘hundreds of thousands of young British girls have been gang raped by members of principally one ethnic group.’” According to the lawsuit, “preceding” that post, the defendants tweeted, “in NoVA they call it Rigbyhalling.”

In response to a question that someone else posted asking what was “Rigbyhalling,” the defendants responded that it corresponded to “a pair of notorious child sex perverts with free run of FCPS (Fairfax County Public Schools) that for some reason aren’t yet in prison,” Rigby’s lawsuit states. The lawsuit states that the defendants, referring to the Virginia Project PAC and Gordon, used the word “pair” to refer to Rigby and Hall.”

It says the defendants tweeted that the FCPS Pride group, which Rigby co-founded, is a “grooming gang” and included a photo of Rigby in that post. In a Feb. 6, 2025, tweet, according to the lawsuit, the defendants stated, “[w]e need to talk about this child abduction scheme that we caught running out of Fairfax County Public Schools.”

Hall’s lawsuit also mentions the “Rigbyhalling” allegation. In addition, it states that Hall was subjected to “numerous false and defamatory statements,” among other things claiming she is an “unemployed crazy person” who has been given access to children “to ask them about sex.” Her lawsuit quotes one of the Virginia Project PAC’s postings as saying her actions were an “obscene scandal that for some reason is allowed to continue.”

It adds, “defendants’ false and defamatory statements were published with actual malice, as defendants knew the statements were false and acted with reckless disregard for the truth.”

Hall’s lawsuit describes her as a longtime community, school and church volunteer who has provided public input at Fairfax County School Board meetings “to support the safety, education, and civil rights of public school students, staff, and their families, primarily focusing on LGBTQIA+ and disability rights.”

The jury trials for both cases were held in the Fairfax County Circuit Court.

Jason Zellman, the Virginia attorney who represented both Rigby and Hall, said the trial for Rigby’s case took place June 8 through June 10. He said the trial for Hall’s case was held June 15 through June 17.

D. Hayden Fisher, the attorney listed in court records as representing the Virginia Project and Gordon, did not respond to a request from the Washington Blade for comment on the jury verdicts against his client.

In his initial “answer” to the Rigby lawsuit filed in court on July 23, 2025, Fisher’s court filing says his client denies the allegations that “it engages in intimidation, publishes disinformation, or engages in any of the other tactics and untoward conduct alleged herein.” It says that any statements made by the defendants that express opinions are protected under the First Amendment as free speech.

NBC Washington reported that the attorney for Gordon and the Virginia Project PAC sent it a statement saying his client will appeal the two jury verdicts, which he said were “improper as a matter of law.”  Without identifying the lawyer by name, NBC Washington said the lawyer’s statement added, “The verdicts will be tossed, and a new trial ordered.”

Zellman, the attorney representing Rigby and Hall, told the Blade he believes both cases are strong and would prevail if the defendants appeal. He said any appeal would likely argue that the Twitter posts about Rigby and Hall were opinions protected by free speech.

“I don’t think that’s going to be a very good legal argument for them,” he said. “Maybe there could have been some qualifying language like in my opinion or ‘I think.’” Zelman said. “There was no language like that with these statements. It was all very declarative, actual assertions,” he added. “So, I think we’re in good shape.”

The juries awarded Rigby $350,000 in compensation for damages from the Virginia Project and Gordon and awarded $750,000 for Hall. It couldn’t immediately be determined if Gordon and his PAC have the financial resources to pay that money.

Rigby said he retired as a teacher after more than 20 years of teaching in 2022 but has since returned to continue teaching part time.

“I can tell you if I don’t see any money out of this, that’s ok,” he told the Blade. “Because I stood up for myself. I stood up for teachers who get accused of things all the time,” he said. “I stood up for people in the LGBTQ community and for parents who have terrible things said about them – I stood up for them.”

(Editor’s note: This is the first installment in a three-part series profiling the candidates for mayor of Rehoboth Beach, Del.: Commissioners Suzanne Goode, Susan Stewart, and Craig Thier; a fourth candidate, William Raak, filed to join the race but has not responded to Blade inquiries.) 

Residents of Rehoboth Beach, Del. will elect a new mayor this summer after Stan Mills announced plans to retire after serving six years as mayor and 12 as a commissioner. One candidate who could make history is Commissioner Susan Stewart, who identifies as part of the LGBTQ community, a potential first for the town, which has never had an openly gay mayor.

Stewart is a current city commissioner for Rehoboth Beach and has served as a member of the Mixed-Use and Stormwater Utility Task Forces. 

A Pennsylvania native who spent her adult life working in Washington, D.C., Stewart has owned a home in Rehoboth since 2013 with her partner of more than 20 years and began living there full time during COVID.

Stewart described her campaign as offering vision, leadership, and integrity. She has a background as an attorney and financial adviser. 

She spoke about the work that she is doing as city commissioner that she would continue as mayor, specifically with Reimagine Rehoboth. 

“I’ve been shepherding through a master planning initiative for the first time,” she said. “We’ve never really had an overall study with urban planners and transportation consultants.” 

Stewart highlighted the upcoming ‘Charrette Week’ from July 13-17 when members of the community can learn about the city from urban planners and give their input on the planning initiative. 

“We’ve got this natural beauty and we’ve got some things we can work on,” said Stewart. During ‘Charrette Week’, Stewart said that the community will also have the chance to rename ‘Reimagine Rehoboth’ due to the pushback it initially received.

“Getting the community engaged and united behind is the big goal,” said Stewart. 

Stewart also mentioned that she is the liaison with Clear Space Theatre Company as it aims to build their own venue in town. She expressed hope in bringing this vision to fruition as she values the art and culture that the company brings to town.

“It hasn’t been lost on us that the Kennedy Center has sort of cut loose a lot of its patrons,” said Stewart. 

Stewart also said she wants to increase age and racial diversity in Rehoboth through supporting the construction of more workforce housing. 

“We don’t generally have [racial and age diversity] here. I wish we did,” said Stewart.

According to the 2024 census, the median age of Rehoboth in 2024 was 63 with 44% of the population being 65 and over. Additionally, 89% of the city’s population was reported to be white. 

Stewart also said that she aims to maintain Delaware’s perfect score on the Human Rights Equality Index in 2025, which she credits to the work of the assistant city manager, Evan Miller, and CAMP Rehoboth for getting Rehoboth to be recognized. 

“Rehoboth is a great place for our broader LGBTQ+ community,” said Stewart. 

She also said that she is proud to support organizations like CAMP Rehoboth, which the city was able to give a grant to for the first time this year according to Stewart.  

“The city and CAMP Rehoboth have such a productive and wonderful relationship.”

Stewart said that she wants CAMP to know that they are always welcome to reach out if they ever have issues that require help from the city. 

“We’ll continue to have a very productive and warm relationship.”

The Blade also asked Stewart about her public disagreement with fellow City Commissioner and mayoral candidate Suzanne Goode in March of this year. 

During a commissioners meeting on March 9, Stewart outlined allegations that Goode used derogatory language in emails, particularly toward City Manager Taylour Tedder.

“All of our emails are public information under FOIA. I simply asked the city to link them on the website, and then the city published a transcript of [Goode’s emails].”

Stewart said that she did this on behalf of the city’s employees such as Tedder: “We have a moral and legal obligation to support our employees.” She also said that this situation has escalated since the March 9 meeting. 

At the meeting, Goode denied all of the allegations and said that they were based on falsehoods. 

“The challenge with Suzanne Good is that she burns through so much time in a public hearing because she wants to talk about all these things in the past,” said Stewart. 

If elected mayor, Stewart said that she would look into measures to help meetings run smoother and prevent disruptions such as turning off mics and moving public comment to the end of the meeting instead of the end of each topic. 

“We want public input, but the people that come there for good reasons to talk about things that they need help with get drowned out by these disruptions.”

The election will take place on Aug. 8, from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. 

The D.C.-based organization SMYAL, which provides services for LGBTQ youth in the D.C. metro area, including housing for homeless LGBTQ youth, announced on June 30 that it received a $25,000 award for its “courageous acts” in support of the community it serves.

The award was a monetary grant from The Courage Project, which describes itself as a “national initiative investing in acts of courage and compassion that strengthens our communities and democracy.” 

A statement on its website says it was launched in May 2025 and is funded and backed by leading national foundations in the U.S.

“At SMYAL, we are deeply grateful to receive support from The Courage Project and are inspired by their bold investment in LGBTQ+ youth at such a critical moment,” SMYAL CEO Erin Whelan said in a statement. “For queer and trans young people, simply showing up as themselves each day requires immense courage, and that courage is strengthened when organizations like The Courage Project stand behind them loudly, proudly, and without hesitation,” Whelan said.

In its statement announcing the award SMYAL says The Courage Project will recognize SMYAL and other awardees and their work on July 3 at the Washington National Cathedral as part of a special interfaith service marking the U.S. 250^th anniversary.

“The Courage Project is a bold initiative honoring everyday acts of bravery – the quiet, often unseen acts of heroism that reflect the best of the American spirit and strengthen democracy at the community level,” the project states on its website.