Teen boy forced to play on girls’ team over birth certificate error, ‘physically removed’ from tryouts
Laker Jackson has always played on boys’ sports teams because he never knew of the legal mix-up on his birth certificate. Arizona’s Family (3TV / CBS 5)/YouTube
An Arizona teenager was barred from trying out for his high school’s boys’ basketball team after a clerical mistake on his birth certificate incorrectly listed him as female — despite the error being corrected and verified by a doctor.
Fourteen-year-old Laker Jackson was reportedly “physically removed” from the Eastmark High School gym in Mesa on October 14, during tryouts for the boys’ basketball team. School officials said his participation violated district policy on athletic “fairness and equality.”
“They sent the athletic director of Eastmark High to physically remove Laker from the basketball tryouts in front of all of his friends, in front of the coach,” said his mother, Becky Jackson, in an interview with AZFamily.
The mix-up traces back to Laker’s birth certificate, which mistakenly listed him as female when he was born. The family only discovered the error last year when enrolling him in school.
“I give them the birth certificate and they’re like, ‘Did you know this says female?’” Becky recalled. “I was like, ‘What? Oh man, that’s so funny.’ So we come home, everyone’s laughing.”
Laker, who is in eighth grade, had already played on boys’ sports teams without issue, including winning a conference championship in wrestling and competing in a boys’ basketball league over the summer.
After realizing the issue, the Jackson family obtained a corrected birth certificate and a doctor’s note verifying Laker’s biological sex.
“It said he was examined and yes, he is a biological male,” Becky said.
But the school district refused to accept the correction, citing internal policy.
“Queen Creek Unified School District is committed to ensuring fairness, integrity, and equal opportunity in all athletic programs for both boys and girls,” the district wrote in a statement. “In this particular case, the student has been enrolled as a biological female throughout their time in our district. Our schools rely on a student’s original birth certificate at birth to determine athletic eligibility.”
The district said Laker could try out for the girls’ basketball team until the matter is “legally clarified.”
Laker said the situation has been upsetting and confusing.
“A lot of kids talk about me because they think it’s funny or weird,” he told ABC15. “I’ve been pulled into the principal’s office, and he’s like, ‘I want you to be comfortable,’ but I am comfortable — if you just put me with the boys.”
The district also suggested that the family could seek chromosomal testing to verify Laker’s gender, a process that can cost up to $2,000. Becky Jackson said she’s hesitant to pursue that route, noting the school only said they might reconsider his eligibility if testing is done.
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