The Bureau of Prisons has introduced stringent guidelines for transgender inmates following President Trump’s executive order, which asserts only two biological sexes. The measures include banning transgender women from purchasing chosen underwear and ending special protocols for pat-down searches. Transgender inmates must now be referred to by their legal names or biological sex pronouns. Recent lawsuits have been filed by transgender women to halt their imminent transfers from female to male facilities, citing risks of violence. Critics argue these new guidelines threaten the safety and privacy of both trans and cisgender inmates, potentially violating federal laws regarding prisoner protections.
On Friday, the Bureau of Prisons introduced stringent new protocols for the treatment of transgender inmates, aligning with President Trump’s executive order regarding gender recognition. This includes the cessation of special protocols for pat-down searches and prohibiting inmates from purchasing their preferred underwear.
The guidelines, dated Feb. 21 and sourced by The New York Times, highlight the drastic measures the federal government must undertake to adhere to the president’s directive that enforces a binary perception of sex, assigned at conception, and claims that men identifying as women jeopardize the safety of women.
This prison memo coincided with a new legal action taken by a group of transgender women seeking to prevent their transfer from all-female to all-male prisons, arguing that such a shift would significantly heighten their risk of experiencing violence. Previously, on Feb. 18, a preliminary injunction had halted the transfer of three transgender women to male institutions.
However, the latest lawsuit claims that the Bureau informed the transgender women not involved in earlier cases that their transfer to male prisons was imminent.
The Bureau of Prisons’ memo elaborates comprehensively on the anticipated treatment of transgender inmates. It mandates that prison personnel refer to these inmates using “their legal name or pronouns that correspond to their biological sex.”
According to the memo, transgender women will no longer have protection from pat-downs conducted by male guards, nor will they be allowed to purchase bras and other women’s apparel from the commissary. Additionally, public funds will no longer be allocated for items that bind breasts, remove body hair, or permit transgender men to use urinals.
“Individuals will not be referred for gender-affirming surgeries,” the memo stated. Nonetheless, those already receiving hormones and other gender-related medical and mental health care prior to Mr. Trump’s order will continue to do so due to a court ruling.
“The safety and mental health of those impacted remains a primary concern, and it is imperative that these modifications are enacted with the utmost compassion and care,” the memo emphasized.
Out of approximately 150,000 federal inmates, less than 1,600 are transgender women, as indicated by government court filings. Around two dozen of these individuals currently reside in women’s facilities while the majority are in men’s facilities, although they may have received specific accommodations like being searched only by female guards or being allowed to purchase women’s clothing. About 700 inmates are trans men.
Proponents for transgender inmates argue that a greater number of trans women should be accommodated in women’s units; however, this is hampered in part due to complex and challenging approval processes for such transitions. Safety protocols must account for both the individual and the institution, requiring thorough mental and physical health assessments.
In only a limited number of instances will a trial judge specify during sentencing that the defendant should be placed in a women’s prison.
Transgender individuals are particularly at risk while incarcerated, a reality recognized by a significant 1994 Supreme Court ruling that established the responsibility of prison officials to ensure their safety. Federal statistics reveal that transgender inmates are ten times more likely than their peers to report incidents of sexual abuse.
According to regulations tied to the 2003 Prison Rape Elimination Act, decisions regarding inmate housing must incorporate risk assessments that take into account transgender status. However, each administration has provided various guidelines to the Bureau of Prisons for conducting such assessments.
Detractors maintain that housing transgender women within women’s prisons jeopardizes the privacy and safety of the other inmates.
In a Jan. 20 executive order, the president directed that these regulations be amended “as necessary,” a normally lengthy endeavor, yet one that Mr. Trump has consistently sought to expedite.
Through a series of executive orders targeting transgender Americans, Mr. Trump has aimed to withdraw federal funding from schools permitting trans girls and women to participate in girls’ and women’s sports, prohibit transgender individuals from military service, and restrict trans people from indicating their gender identities on passports.
However, such intentions encounter notable obstacles. The bureau guidance released on Friday stated that Mr. Trump’s executive order “does not override or alter BOP’s requirement to comply with federal laws and regulations,” which include the Prison Rape Elimination Act.
This suggests a conflict between the Bureau of Prisons and the executive order. Courts have consistently determined that prison systems must provide gender-related health care to transgender inmates. In the fiscal year 2022, the Bureau of Prisons reportedly allocated $153,000—or a mere 0.01 percent of its total health care spending—on hormone therapy, as disclosed in information submitted to Congress by Colette Peters, the then-director of the bureau.
Mr. Trump’s directive stated that all prisoners should be incarcerated based on their sex at birth and that gender-related medical services should cease. In response, several transgender women have initiated lawsuits, asserting that this would expose them to an increased risk of physical and sexual violence and worsen their existing mental health conditions.
One individual, protesting under the pseudonym Jane Jones, has undergone multiple surgeries, including vaginoplasty, legally changed her name and sex markers on identification documents, and “has always been recognized as a woman by federal correctional officials,” according to her lawsuit. “A woman with complete female anatomy has no rightful place in a men’s facility,” Ms. Jones asserted in an affidavit.
In another case, Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a preliminary judgment prohibiting the three plaintiffs’ transfer to a men’s facility, stating they had “clearly established that irreparable harm would result.”
Nevertheless, this week, the Bureau of Prisons appeared to be advancing with plans to relocate others, as mentioned in the latest lawsuit.
While the transfers may not be directly perceived as violating the judge’s order, David Super, a Georgetown law professor, argued that they would contravene the intent of Judge Lamberth’s ruling, which indicated that such a transfer would likely breach the Constitution’s prohibition against “cruel and unusual punishment.”
“Historically, administrations do not undertake actions that a current court order deems unlawful,” he remarked.
The Bureau of Prisons has yet to respond to requests for comments.
Jennifer Levi, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, indicated that Judge Lamberth was clear in his ruling that relocating the inmates would likely infringe upon their rights to safety while incarcerated and access to adequate medical care.
“Any responsible administration would halt these perilous transfers rather than continue to endanger women so gravely,” Ms. Levi stated.