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Publication Date

6-3-2024

Abstract

There are an estimated 1.6 million transgender individuals in the United States. Yet the nation’s prison systems have retained their traditional binary structure, separating male and female inmates. The federal Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) became effective in 2012, outlining best practices for the housing of transgender inmates. In recent years, there have been several court decisions that have directly and indirectly increased the protections available to transgender inmates. Many states have also passed legislation updating their prison policies to address these issues, but these measures have not been uniform. Some states have not yet adopted the PREA recommendations while others have gone beyond the federal proposals. Some advocates believe that PREA itself is an insufficient response to the issues facing transgender inmates and propose alternative solutions. This Note argues that prison housing reform must carefully balance the safety of transgender inmates with that of cisgender inmates. It proposes that the case-by-case approach found in PREA—if implemented with appropriate limitations—is the most realistic, immediate, and effective way of ensuring the greatest protection of all inmates. It concludes that a uniform prison housing policy for transgender inmates, heightened judicial review of these policies, and a factored evaluation of individual inmates will progress the United States prison system beyond its current binary bounds while upholding the fundamental safety goals of the carceral system.

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