SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law on Saturday requiring the state to house transgender inmates in prisons based on their gender identity — but only if the state does not have “management or security concerns.”
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation houses men and women in separate facilities.
Transgender inmates are often housed based on their sex assigned at birth.
Advocates say this is dangerous, particularly for transgender women housed in facilities for men.
The law Newsom signed Saturday says officers must ask inmates privately during the intake process if they identify as transgender, nonbinary or intersex.
Those inmates can then request to be placed in a facility that houses either men or women.
The law says the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation cannot deny those requests solely because of inmates’ anatomy, sexual orientation or a factor present” among other inmates at the facility.
But the state can deny those requests if it has “management or security concerns.”
If a request is denied, the state must give the inmate a written statement explaining the decision and give the inmate a “meaningful opportunity” to object.
At any time, if inmates raises concerns about their health or safety, the law says the state must reassess where they are housed.
Connecticut passed a similar law in 2018. Rhode Island, New York City and Massachusetts have also housed inmates based on their gender identity.
The law also requires officers to address transgender inmates based on the pronouns of their choice. And it requires officers to search inmates based on the search policy of their gender identity.
*story by ABC 7 Los Angeles