A US judge has temporarily blocked federal prison officials from transferring a transgender woman to a men’s facility and denying her access to gender-affirming care, in line with an executive order issued by President Donald Trump, her lawyers said on Thursday.
US District Judge George O’Toole in Boston granted a temporary restraining order on Sunday while the inmate’s case remained sealed. The lawsuit appears to be the first legal challenge to Trump’s executive order, signed on January 20—his first day back in office—which targets what he calls “gender ideology extremism.”
Trump’s directive orders the federal government to recognise only two biologically distinct sexes, house transgender women in men’s prisons, and end funding for gender-affirming medical care for inmates.
The lawsuit, filed under the pseudonym Maria Moe, was initially sealed but was made public on Thursday as a hearing took place to determine whether further legal protections should be granted.
The case was brought by lawyers from two LGBTQ rights groups, including GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD). Following the unsealing, GLAD confirmed that O’Toole’s temporary restraining order would remain in effect while he considers a longer-lasting injunction.
According to GLAD, the judge’s order requires prison officials to keep the inmate in the general population of a women’s facility and continue providing her medical care. Jennifer Levi, a GLAD attorney representing Moe, said it was a relief that her client “is staying put for now.”
O’Toole is still reviewing whether to issue a preliminary injunction that would extend the legal protections. Meanwhile, three other transgender women in prison filed a similar lawsuit in Washington, DC, on Thursday, also challenging Trump’s policy.
The US Attorney’s Office in Boston declined to comment.
Moe’s lawyers said that just a day after Trump signed the order, officials from the Federal Bureau of Prisons informed her that she would be transferred to a men’s facility, putting her at “extremely high risk of harassment, abuse, violence, and sexual assault.”
They also stated that the Bureau of Prisons changed Moe’s official classification from “female” to “male” and was prepared to cut off her access to hormones she has taken since her teenage years to treat gender dysphoria.
Moe’s legal team argues that Trump’s executive order discriminates based on sex, violating her due process rights under the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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