FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — A Republican lawmaker plans to introduce legislation banning men from using women's restrooms at the state capitol following an incident involving a transgender woman in Frankfort.
The incident occurred last Thursday at the state capitol when Representative Bill Wesley of Ravenna reportedly stopped a trans woman, Carma Bell Marshall, who stepped out of one of the women's bathrooms. Wesley said he intervened after noticing the discomfort on the faces of schoolchildren leaving the restroom.
Wesley recounted the confrontation on social media platform X, claiming, "A far-left Democratic senator slapped me after I kept a man pretending to be a woman out of the girl's bathroom in the Kentucky Capitol."
In a video posted on X, Wesley identified Senator Karen Berg of Louisville as the lawmaker involved in the altercation. Berg denied physically assaulting Wesley.
In a phone interview on Monday, Berg acknowledged the encounter, clarifying that she had apologized to Wesley for "tapping" him forcefully.
"I apologized and hope he would apologize to Carma Bell Marshall," Berg said.
Marshall, who was speaking at an LGBTQ event at the capitol on the day of the incident, addressed the crowd, saying, "I have been to this capitol countless times, spoken to many representatives, and today was the first day I was accosted in the female bathroom."
Chris Hartman of the Fairness Campaign condemned the situation, asserting that the Kentucky capitol is a space where everyone should feel welcome and safe.
“Everyone is welcome in the Kentucky capitol building, and everyone is welcome to use the restroom in which they feel most safe and comfortable,” Hartman said.
He emphasized that Kentucky's civil rights statute protects individuals from discrimination and harassment based on gender identity.
"The only person who didn't belong in the restroom was the representative," Hartman added.
