Utah Prison Discriminated Against Transgender Woman, DOJ Finds

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Utah Department of Corrections came under fire Tuesday for discriminating against a transgender woman who the U.S. Department of Justice said was driven to harm herself after she was repeatedly denied hormone therapy in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

A federal investigation found that the state corrections department imposed “unnecessary barriers” to block the incarcerated trans woman from receiving treatment for intense gender dysphoria. The woman’s psychological distress, which doctors attributed to a mismatch between her birth sex and her gender identity, worsened significantly while she was incarcerated in a men’s prison, according to the Justice Department report.

After nearly two years of fighting for access to hormones and other gender-affirming accommodations, she performed a dangerous self-surgery to cut off her own testicles.

Now, the DOJ is demanding immediate policy changes and anti-discrimination training for all Utah correctional officers to protect other incarcerated people from future harm. The state agency also will be required to pay damages to the trans inmate, who was not identified in the report. The dollar amount had not been set as of Tuesday.

Brian Redd, executive director of the Utah Department of Corrections, pushed back against the discrimination allegations and said he was disappointed by the investigators’ approach. He did not indicate whether the agency would comply with the DOJ’s demands.

“We have been working to address this complex issue and were blindsided by today’s public announcement from the Department of Justice,” Redd said in a statement. “We have also taken steps on our own and as a state to address the needs of inmates while