Maryland
Former FreeState Justice executive director denies allegations against them
Jeremy LaMaster denies they launched ‘coordinated attack’
The former executive director of FreeState Justice on Tuesday denied they have launched a “coordinated attack” against their former organization.
Jeremy LaMaster on Sept. 19 announced their resignation after they said FreeState Justice”s board of directors declined their request to step down.
FreeState Justice two days later in a federal court filing against LaMaster said they “immediately began a coordinated attack on FreeState’s operations; in particular, its IT assets” after they left a Sept. 16 meeting in which the board informed them they “were relieved of their duties, and the final two weeks of their employment were to be spent cooperating in the transition of FreeState’s operations.”
“When FreeState discovered LaMaster’s improper interference, it terminated their employment effective immediately, ordered them to cease and desist and to rectify their actions,” reads the court filing. “LaMaster did not abide and continued to hijack and misappropriate FreeState’s IT infrastructure and documents.”
“What would hacking into someone’s email and deleting an email do,” LaMaster told the Washington Blade during a FaceTime interview.
LaMaster, who uses they/them pronouns, told the Blade they started “working on this transition stuff” once they returned home from the Sept. 16 meeting and “I started getting error messages for our intake system.”
“After the Sept 16 meeting, someone else, not me, began deactivating email accounts, including mine, breaking workflows for our client intake and other processes, causing a lot of problems for our IT infrastructure,” said LaMaster on Wednesday in a follow-up text message.
LaMaster said they began to receive text messages on Sept. 18 about “criminal charges” and “allegations.”
LaMaster told the Blade they tried to call now FreeState Justice Executive Director Phillip Westry on Sept. 18, but he did not accept his call.
“I sent an email to the team about this is what happened, this is what I was doing,'” said LaMaster. “Some of our things are down. Please let me know.”
LaMaster said they sent a Slack message to Westry and now Deputy Executive Director Tina Jones on the morning of Sept. 20 in order to “help transition IT.” LaMaster told the Blade they “learned about the restraining order and a number of IT issues and allegations when everyone else did.”
LaMaster, who is representing themself, attended a court hearing in Baltimore on Monday.
LaMaster told the Blade that they said they could provide passwords to their FreeState Justice email account. LaMaster said they provided the passwords to all other software systems the organization uses.
LaMaster sent the Blade a screenshot of a text message thread between them and Jones.
“Please provide the the (sic) appropriate login credentials and administrator access to all FreeState Justice systems,” Jones told LaMaster. “Please do not attempt to access any systems or the office.”
“As I mentioned yesterday — I do not know the passwords off the top of my head and will need to either 1) test them or 2) reset them. This required accessing the systems,” responded LaMaster. “I’m not being obtuse — but you’ve all made a large number of false (and impossible) accusation based on the very limited understanding of our tech, or tech in general (not being rude, but y’all know it’s true.)
“Like I said, I think a phone call or Zoom, we can even record it so that I cam (sic) do/show exactly what I am doing,” added LaMaster. “I’m here for the lawyer robot responses and the desire for retaliation to continue to block FreeState legal services delivery, and then turn around and blame you (sic) lack of cooperation and knowledge on me.”
LaMaster told the Blade they were “supposed to return items and keys and such” to FreeState Justice’s offices at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, but “no one was there.” The text thread shows LaMaster texted Jones at 4:43 p.m. to let her know that they’re “here to drop off keys and pick up my stuff, but no one is answering the door.”
“They’re still holding my personal belongings and not accepting my keys and FSJ (FreeState Justice) checks,” LaMaster told the Blade.
Board has ‘white supremacist culture’
LaMaster in June 2020 succeeded Mark Procopio as executive director.
LaMaster in their resignation letter said they stepped down after board members refused their request to immediately step down “due to persistent violations of our board handbook, consistent failures in their fiduciary responsibilities, and using positions of power to engage in partisan lobbying within FreeState Justice and their repeated refusal to add new members and leadership to the board.”
LaMaster in his email noted they “exhausted every avenue over the past two years to get our board fully staffed and running, and I made good faith efforts to work with the board to ensure that our clients and low-income LGBTQ Marylanders remained at our center.”
“Instead, the board has refused to accept any new board members since 2021 and refused to staff and run core board activities as per our handbook,” wrote LaMaster. “Instead, they have worked to consolidate power and amend the board handbook in secret to lower the minimum number of board members required and ensure that our policy positions prioritize relationships with legislators, not the best interests of our clients and community. I have provided clear warnings and consistent concerns over these issues that were repeatedly ignored.”
LaMaster reiterated his criticism of the board when they spoke with the Blade.
“As with most nonprofits, I’m sure if you talk to any executive director, they will tell you the large number of challenges that comes to board and nonprofit boards and cultivating and building them and supporting them. There have been chronic issues for two years now,” they said.
“I think everyone gets a pass with the (COVID-19) pandemic, but at some point, stop getting passes,” LaMaster added. “There was just a lot of really poor decision making that was costing the organization money, and really not fulfilling core responsibilities laid out in our board handbook.”
LaMaster specifically noted the board’s abrupt decision in May 2022 to stop offering COVID-19 vaccines to people experiencing homelessness after FreeState Justice’s landlord “did a full Karen” and “went to the board and was complaining about a whole lot of things, the majority of which were not true.”
“It basically screwed six or seven of our homeless clients out of getting their second dose,” they said.
LaMaster also said board members did not take their calls for more advocacy on behalf of LGBTQ students in Maryland seriously. LaMaster further accused board members of threatening FreeState Justice’s 501(c)(3) status because of their ties to politicians they didn’t specifically identify.
“We don’t exist to help politicians get easy wins and in the General Assembly,” said LaMaster. “We exist to provide widespread advocacy work and transparent information to the community.”
LaMaster also accused board members of engaging in unethical behavior.
They said Brianna January, the board’s vice president, repeatedly asked FreeState Justice staff to secure funding that would allow her to be hired as the organization’s policy director. LaMaster provided the Blade with a text message in which January asked them to hire her.
LaMaster further reiterated their previous claim the board engages in white supremacism.
“When I say white supremacist culture within the board, this response is case and point of that culture, of that type of culture,” they said.
Westry on Wednesday declined to comment on LaMaster’s allegations.
“FreeState Justice has provided comments on this issue to several publications about the ongoing litigation with Jeremy LaMaster,” Westry told the Blade in an email. “We are in active litigation with LaMaster and will offer no further comment.”
Maryland
Advocates for trans students urge Md. to fight White House threats
Four school districts under federal investigation
By JESSICA CALEFATI | Allies of transgender children are urging state education officials to fight back against the Trump-Vance administration, which has threatened to punish a growing number of Maryland school districts over local policies that affirm students’ gender identities.
The advocates testified Tuesday morning before the Maryland State Board of Education — one day after the U.S. Education and Justice departments alleged that Anne Arundel County’s school system violated federal student privacy law by withholding a student’s gender identity from their parents. A spokesperson for the district said Monday legal counsel had not yet reviewed the claims and that the district had no further comment.
School districts in Prince George’s, Montgomery, and Frederick Counties were already under investigation for allegedly violating Title IX, the civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination. The federal government last month threatened to revoke funding from the districts because they allow trans students to use restrooms and locker rooms that align with their identities.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland
White House threatens Anne Arundel schools over gender identity policy
District faces possible legal action or loss of federal funding
By JESSICA CALEFATI | The Trump-Vance administration on Monday threatened to punish Anne Arundel County’s school system with legal action or the loss of federal funding for allegedly withholding information about a student’s gender identity and transition from the child’s parents.
The U.S. Education and Justice Departments together determined that the suburban Maryland district treats students’ gender identities as confidential medical information that cannot be shared with parents, in violation of federal student privacy law, according to a news release. A federal lawsuit filed against the district earlier this month made similar claims.
“As a mother and a grandmother, it is unconscionable that any school district would hide the most sensitive information about children in their care from their own parents,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement. “This is not only an affront to basic moral principles, but also to parents’ rights under federal law.”
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland
Christa Tichy hopes to preserve LGBTQ representation in Md. House of Delegates
Queer Democrat running to succeed retiring state Del. Bonnie Cullison
When longtime Maryland state Del. Bonnie Cullison (D-Montgomery County) announced she would retire, Christa Tichy immediately saw an opportunity.
The queer Democrat advanced from the June primary and will appear on the November ballot, hoping to succeed one of Maryland’s first openly LGBTQ legislators and preserve LGBTQ representation in Annapolis.
“But when Bonnie made that announcement, I knew right away that that’s what I was supposed to do,” Tichy told the Washington Blade during a recent interview. She always felt connected to Cullison’s background, which she said is very similar to her own.
Some of these shared traits include a background in teaching and a strong connection to Leisure World of Maryland. Cullison has inspired her in the past and feels motivated to take her place. She had always hoped to be her successor.
Besides their shared background, she also understands how important it is under the Trump-Vance administration to advocate for LGBTQ rights, as Cullison had in the past.
“I think there’s a lot of fears with the present administration of losing certain rights. And you know, Bonnie was a big advocate for marriage equality. I want to continue that, and you know, make sure that legislation that protects that is in place,” Tichy said.
Beyond specific policy priorities, Tichy said preserving LGBTQ representation in the General Assembly was equally important.
“I mean, of all the candidates that ran, I was the only female. […] I thought we needed that voice. We could not just let that voice be forgotten,” Tichy said.
Tichy said she believes serving in the Maryland General Assembly is where she can have the greatest impact on the issues she cares most about; including education, labor, and working families.
“I knew that this was my passion, and I felt this is where I could be most effective on a state level when it came to education, labor, for working with families,” Tichy said.
Throughout the campaign, Tichy said one unexpected source of enthusiasm came from her personal life. She and her now-wife, Jodie Bekman, were married during the campaign, and constituents closely followed their journey.
“A lot of my constituents knew that I was engaged in getting married, and they met my now wife, and our marriage was like part of the campaign,” Tichy said. “So, like our ring, the date, […], Jodie would come along with me just about at every event, so people got to know her and couldn’t help but like her.”
She believes that openness helped voters connect with her campaign on a personal level.
“I think there was an energy and an excitement to seeing two people that much in love that actually could win. I think that all contributed to it,” Tichy said.
Tichy also credited support from other LGBTQ elected officials, including state Del. Kris Fair (D-Frederick County), who chairs Maryland’s LGBTQ+ Caucus, and Montgomery County Councilmember Evan Glass. She said Fair was among the first elected officials to publicly endorse her campaign.
She also praised the volunteers who helped propel her through the primary election, from canvassing neighborhoods to enduring rainy weather on Election Day.
“When I think of how they stood out […] in the rain on election day with raincoats and umbrellas pouring down, holding walk cards that were like just folding over. They were so wet and damp. That’s the type of dedication that we had,” Tichy said.
Outside of politics, Tichy has built a career breaking barriers in the skilled trades. She became Maryland’s first female licensed Master Electrician and now teaches electrical trade courses, helping students prepare for careers in the field.
She said many of her students come from underserved communities and that helping them find stable careers has reinforced her commitment to workforce development.
A lot of her policies focus on workforce development and encouraging more women to join career trades.
Her experiences in the electrical trade also shaped many of her policy priorities. Tichy said she has advocated for better workplace conditions, including properly fitting equipment for women and paid time off for workers who were often reluctant to take leave.
Working in a male-dominated profession, she said, was not always easy.
“I remember how many times I wanted to say, ‘I’m going to give up. I’m not going to do this. It’s too hard,’ and I always thought — I’m a mom. I have, you know, four boys now, but they needed me, and I was all they had, right?” Tichy said.
Looking ahead to November, Tichy said she hopes to continue the success of her campaign thus far and to keep reaching out to her community for support.
“Our diversity is our greatest strength, and by working together, there is no challenge we cannot overcome,” she said in a statement after winning the Democratic primary.
Other LGBTQ candidates also advanced to the general election, which can be found here.
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