Global Courant 2023-04-21 12:31:29
A recently filed lawsuit alleges that a transgender woman was housed with men in the Baltimore, Maryland state-run prison for three months and was sexually assaulted at knifepoint six months prior to her assault trial and denied her hormone treatment.
In her lawsuit, Chelsea Gilliam said her constitutional rights under the 14th Amendment had been violated, claiming that Maryland correctional institutions discriminated against her because of her gender identity. Lawyers have called for damages after dependents caused Gilliam “pain and suffering, emotional, psychological and physical distress and violation of dignity”.
“If you are locked up, not only do you lose your freedom, you also lose your dignity and your sense of self,” Gilliam said at a press conference on Wednesday along with her lawyer. “I was treated like an alien… by inmates and staff – a local joke, day in and day out.”
“I was treated like an alien… by inmates and staff – a local joke, day in and day out.”
Chelsea Gilliam, a transgender woman awaiting trial at a men’s prison in Baltimore, was sexually assaulted by another inmate by another inmate, regularly ridiculed, and denied hormone therapy. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/The Baltimore Sun via AP)
Gilliam was initially arrested for assault in December 2021, but was repeatedly held without bail pending trial, according to online court records. She spent nearly six months in a men’s prison before pleading guilty and being paroled.
Between December 17, 2021 and May 13, 2022, Gilliam, a biological male, claimed she was forced to live and shower with male inmates during her first three months at the Baltimore City Correctional Center (BCCC). Gilliam said she had been sexually assaulted and refused her hormone treatments.
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“I would say I was treated like an animal, but it was worse than that. People love and respect their animals, Gilliam told WBAL. “I was treated like an alien from the moment I entered Baltimore City Corrections, by inmates and staff.”
“I would say I was treated like an animal, but it was worse than that. People love and respect their animals.”
According to the lawsuit, Gilliam was diagnosed with and began treatment for gender dysphoria in 2003. Since her diagnosis, Gilliam has been on hormonal treatment for the past 18 years. She legally changed her name to Chelsea in 2009 and has identified as female since she was 17 years old.
During her time at BCCC, Gilliam claims she was denied hormone treatment, which the lawsuit said had immediate physical and mental effects.
According to the lawsuit, Gilliam was housed with men at the correctional center and was consistently misrepresented by staff. She was forced to live and shower with male inmates, “despite the known risk of sexual assault by male inmates and in violation of” correctional department policy.
Although transgender prisoners are supposed to have access to separate showers, Gilliam was forced to undress in public. She started avoiding the showers after a male inmate sexually proposed to her; he later threatened her life and assaulted her with a knife, the indictment says.
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In the end, the staff promised Gilliam accommodation, including private showers and time off, but the promise was in name only and the staff “refused to honor those accommodations”.
In her experience, Gilliam said, it was pointless to ask to be transferred to a women’s facility. Guards would simply reply, “You are a man and you are in prison,” she wrote in the indictment.
All of this happened before she was even convicted of a crime, her attorney Eve Hill said.
Chelsea Gilliam, left, and her attorney Eve Hill, right, of Brown, Goldstein & Levy LLP, speak at a news conference Wednesday, April 19, 2023, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/The Baltimore Sun via AP)
Gilliam was then transferred to the Maryland Shelter, Diagnosis, and Classification Center for three months, where she claimed she was held in solitary confinement because of her gender identity and was handcuffed with a three-piece shackle every time she left the solitary confinement cell, despite “no write-ups or disciplinary violations.”
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The lawsuit alleges that Gilliam was rarely let out of her solitary confinement cell. During the week, Gilliam was let out of the cell for an hour a day during the week and not at all on the weekends.
“It’s like they wanted me to pay for being transgender. That’s what it felt like,” she said.
“It’s like they wanted me to pay for being transgender. That’s what it felt like.”
The lawsuit alleges that the two prisons where Gilliam was held had clear standards for the treatment of transgender inmates. The lawsuit cites the Defendant Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DSCS) as saying they must allow transgender inmates to shower separately, continue hormone treatment, and be assigned a facility on a case-by-case basis.
The lawsuit names Carolyn Scruggs, secretary of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, as the defendant alongside other department employees, including the security guards at both facilities.
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Gilliam’s case is the latest example of transgender inmates suffering the consequences of a system that refuses to respect their rights, her lawyer Eve Hill said at the press conference.
Across the country, transgender inmates are often incarcerated in facilities based on their sex assigned at birth, not their gender identity. Proponents say this is dangerous, especially for transgender women who are held in detention with men.
Brown, Goldstein & Levy attorney Eve Hill did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a writer on Fox News Digital’s breaking news team. You can reach her on Twitter at @s_rumpfwhiteten.
