A federal judge has dismissed a Centreville High School teacher’s lawsuit alleging retaliation and violations of whistleblower protection laws by Fairfax County Public Schools after she claimed that school staff helped minors obtain abortions.
In his memorandum opinion, issued May 8, Judge Anthony J. Trenga wrote that the teacher, Zenaida Perez, had “failed to plead facts which, when viewed most favorably to her, plausibly give rise to a claim for whistleblower retaliation.”
Trenga’s 15-page opinion was focused not only on the merits of Perez’s claims to whistleblower protections, but on whether the school board had immunity from claims and a right to take action against her. The senior district judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria also considered whether FCPS had defamed her and violated her constitutional right to speak out on a matter of public concern.
In 2025, Perez went public with allegations that a co-worker and other staff assisted minors in obtaining abortions without the consent of their parents or guardians—in violation of Virginia law—using school funds. Out of the two minors who were reportedly approached by staff, one allegedly had the procedure; the other did not.
Perez said that she reported the incidents to then-principal Chad Lehman and other staff in 2021 and 2022, but was ignored; Lehman eventually told Perez that both the guidance counselor in question and the student denied the allegations.
The public reports became a political talking point in the November gubernatorial election and quickly gained national attention. In September, the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, and Labor (HELP) Committee announced an investigation into the allegations, as did the Department of Education.
Virginia State Police also launched an investigation at the direction of then-Gov. Glenn Youngkin that remains “open and active,” a VSP spokesperson confirmed to FFXnow.
The school system’s own internal probe — released by the law firm King & Spalding in October — largely rebuffed Perez’s statements. Shortly afterwards, Perez filed a civil lawsuit against FCPS and individual staff members seeking $1 million in damages, plus various legal fees, in response to alleged disciplinary actions and retaliation against her. The suit was moved to federal court in February.
In dismissing the lawsuit, Trenga wrote that “even when viewing the allegations in the Complaint as a whole, and most favorably to the Plaintiff,” the school system and individual staff had acted reasonably.
According to Trenga’s opinion:
“Even were Plaintiff’s speech motivated more by pro-life sentiment than personal grievance against the guidance counselor, or any other school official, none of the various alleged investigations substantiated Plaintiff’s claims, and the Individual Defendants could reasonably have believed that Plaintiff’s speech interests were outweighed by the school system’s countervailing interests, particularly in light of her failure to provide Lehman with the evidence she claimed to have, which she instead published years later through a report by a political blogger.”
In a statement to FFXnow, Americans United for Life, an organization that provided legal assistance to Perez, said that it was weighing Perez’s options.
“While we are disappointed by the court’s decision, we continue to evaluate our client’s options for further recourse,” said Steven H. Aden, AUL’s chief legal officer and general counsel, who acted as co-counsel for Perez, alongside Monique Miles of Old Towne Associates. “Investigations by the Senate HELP Committee, U.S. Department of Education and Virginia State Police [are] still ongoing to which we have confidence our client will ultimately be vindicated.”
In response to an inquiry from FFXnow, FCPS issued a statement saying that it “is pleased with the U.S. District Court’s decision to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Zenaida Perez against the School Board, the Superintendent, and other Division officials.
“The court’s ruling to dismiss these claims in their entirety confirms the Division’s longstanding position that the Perez allegations were baseless. This decision allows our leaders and staff to remain focused on our primary mission: the education and well-being of our students.
“We are grateful for the continued dedication of the Centreville High School leadership and staff, who have remained steadfast in their commitment to their school community throughout this process. FCPS considers this matter closed.”
This article was updated to include a response from Fairfax County Public Schools, which was received after publication. An additional update was added May 13 to include confirmation from VSP about the status of the investigation.
