RICHMOND — A woman identifying herself in the House gallery as “Nana” used a point of personal privilege on Feb. 18 to describe a series of events involving her granddaughter, whom she identified as Sage, and to urge lawmakers to hear victims and consider policy changes.

Nana told the House she and her husband adopted Sage after the death of their son. She said Sage struggled with depression during the COVID‑19 pandemic and later told family she was adopting a male name and pronouns at school. Nana said the school stopped sharing information with the family in August 2021, and that Sage was thereafter targeted and bullied.

Nana recounted a traumatic incident she said occurred in a school bathroom, after which the school did not inform the family for two days. She said Sage later ran away, was lured online, taken from the District of Columbia into Maryland and later found in Baltimore by law enforcement. Nana said the FBI and local sheriffs were involved in search efforts. She said court proceedings followed in which, she alleges, an attorney and a judge treated Sage as a male named Draco and withheld custody; she said Sage was placed in settings where she suffered further assaults and was given drugs. She said she and her family were cleared of allegations of abuse, and a different lawyer later secured Sage’s discharge from a facility so she could return home and receive trauma care.

Why it matters: Nana’s testimony described gaps she perceives in school communication with families, the legal process in juvenile or custody hearings, and the treatment of victims who identify as transgender or who had earlier mental‑health histories. She asked why the legislature would deny victims’ testimony a hearing in committee and urged action to prevent trafficking and better support victims.

Transcript details: The account included references to dates (August 2021 as the start of the school concealment from the family), to involvement by the FBI and local law enforcement, and to a courtroom appearance before Judge Robert Kershaw (named in the speaker’s remarks). The witness asked the House to listen to victims and to ensure committees hear testimony on trafficking and related protections.

No formal legislative action was taken on the floor in direct response to the testimony during the morning hour. Several members later offered points of personal privilege and ceremonial remarks, but the testimony itself was a public‑record account and a request that lawmakers consider committee hearings and legislative remedies.

Ending: The House proceeded with its scheduled calendar after the testimony. Nana’s statement was delivered under the chamber’s rules for personal privilege and remains part of the session transcript.