By David Young And Sheila Mckenzie-
The Justice Secretary for Scotland’s recent announcement that prisoners with a history of violence against women will be accommodated in a women’s prison was primarily aimed at preserving transgender rights.
Scotland’s justice secretary last week announced an urgent review of all transgender inmates earlier in the week.
The review is aimed at protecting the rights of transgenders, after it emerged that a transition to the prison of transgender woman, Isla Bryson, (pictured) sparked controversy.
Serial rapist, Isla Bryson, made headlines after it was revealed that she had raped three women when he was originally a man. Bryson became the notorious face of evil, her gender transition not welcome by the public at all, after hearing the horrid past she holds as a man called Adam Graham.
The media gladly and justifiably published pictures of Bryson when she was Adam Graham, forcing Bryson to face the reality of her shameful and horrifying past still hunting her till the present day. The sight of cameras has been her worst nightmare, making her attempt to hide from the inescapable.
The public had a right to be shown both pictures of the criminal- in her transgender form, and her past life as Adam Graham.
The idea of a serial rapist who had raped three women as a man masking as a woman under gender rights was instinctively obscene to the minds of most right thinking women, who wouldn’t want to be subjected to the risk of mixing with a rapist, appearing in the form of a transgender.
Eradicating from the mind the reality that the human being allowed to integrate with your gender was once every woman’s nightmare, violating their very identity and freedom, was an impossible task for any woman. Female convicts would not tolerate it, which is why Scotland’s Justice secretary emphasised the fact the transgender woman in this case was insulated from other prisoners.
The Scottish Prison System has established a framework to manage the complexities that can arise when handling violent criminals as man who have become transgender women.
The Sottish government stressed the importance of respecting the rights of transgenders, given the need to be sensitive to their different and complex personal situation that has driven them to gender transition.
Gender dysphoria is a complex subject matter, and deserve protection from unfair bias and treatment.
The Scottish department said its prison framework maximises safety for all transgenders, and that each case related to a violent transgender with a violent past towards women will be judged on its merit.
The Scottish government has been keen to emphasise its outlook of dealing with each case on its merits, its latest review stressing the importance of protecting trans rights.
The Justice Secretary, Keith Brown’s latest review emphasised the rigorous and robust individualised assessment it conducts in considering the safety of other inmates.
His department has emphasised that transgender women must not be unfairly stereotyped at their expense because they are they most marginalised group in society.
The Justice Department stressed the importance of maintaining public confidence in the justice system, and, for that reason, highlighting the importance of keeping the discussion around the issue as calm and founded on fact as possible.
Impact
A statement from the department read: ”The things that we say in the Parliament have an impact on people, in the context of the criminal justice system, they are often very vulnerable people. We must not allow the legitimate questions that are being asked to fuel the view that trans women somehow pose an inherent threat to women, when that is not the case. What is important is the crime that they have committed and the risk that they pose to other prisoners, staff and, indeed, themselves.
”We have said this before, but I will say it again: we are talking about a very small number of people. Transgender people in the prison estate account for roughly 0.27 per cent of the entire prison population, which equates to around 20 people out of 7,367 prisoners. The number changes regularly but, as of today, we have around 17 trans women prisoners, the majority of whom are kept in the male estate. On Sunday, it was announced by the Scottish Prison Service that it is doing a further deep dive into those circumstances.
”By its very nature, the prison population as a whole has a significant number of people of all genders who represent a risk to others. We must recognise and commend the professionalism and great expertise of the prison service in managing those complex, high-profile and challenging individuals who are in its care and in keeping others safe.
Gender Identity
They Justice Department said its policy originally envisaged individuals being admitted to prisons that accord to their gender identity, subject to an individualised risk assessment.
”That has not changed recently, nor has it been impacted by the recent Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, which was passed by this Parliament, the department said.
The department added that there is no automatic right or policy in Scotland for trans women to serve a sentence in a female prison, nor for a trans man to be in the male estate.
‘The Prison Service retains the ability to place people in a prison that may not correspond to their identified gender, and it makes those decisions on the basis of a rigorous and robust individualised risk assessment and by taking account of all relevant factors, including the safety of the individual, of other prisoners and of staff’.
”No transgender prisoner will be placed in the general population–either male or female–without that risk assessment, its review on Thursday stated.
The department added that SPS is also now undertaking an urgent lessons learned review in relation to the case of Isla Bryson, with any learning to be applied immediately to existing cases of transgender people in the prison estate and to any cases of those coming into custody.
”Until those reviews are complete, no transgender person who is already in custody with any history of violence against women, including those with any history of sexual offences against women, will be moved from the male to the female estate.
In addition, no newly convicted or remanded transgender prisoner with any history of violence against women will be placed in the female estate. For clarity, that definition includes any history of violence, including sexual offences.
”It added that if following thorough and robust risk assessments and taking account of all relevant factors, it is felt that there are exceptional circumstances in a particular case, the approval of ministers will be sought. That is not dissimilar to the situation that was announced last week in England and Wales.
The Scottish Prison Service will always seek ministerial approval for those particular cases will not change the general position that decisions on the management and accommodation of prisoners within the prison estate have been and will continue to be operational matters for the Scottish Prison Service.
Transgender Rights
The Justice Secretary said ”it is right that the actions that we have taken will continue to ensure that we respect and protect the rights of trans individuals, wherever they are in society, including in our prisons, and that we continue to consider and protect the safety of all prisoners and staff.
It said the outcome of the reviews that are being progressed will ensure that any immediate lessons are learned from the issues that have been identified by those cases and that the wider review of the Prison Service’s current policy on the management of trans prisoners and the subsequent application of that policy take account of relevant factors including input from experts in women affected by trauma and violence.
The system will base its decisions in individual cases on the seriousness of the risk posed by each offender, its detailed statement made clear.
Keith Brown’s original announcement to conduct a review comes came days after Nicola Sturgeon said she did not favour “a blanket approach” to transgender prisoners, and amid growing pressure on her government after reports that another violent transgender prisoner had been approved for transfer into the female prison estate.
The justice secretary, Keith Brown then announced a pause on the movement of all transgender prisoners, pending the outcome of an urgent review of the case of Isla Bryson, a transgender woman whose move to Scotland’s only all-female prison, Cornton Vale, immediately after being convicted of two rapes prompted outrage.
The department went to great lengths to carefully explain its thought process in arriving at the conclusions it had done, and to assure the British public that it had considered the matter responsibly.
Consistency
The department said its announcement is aimed at achieving some level of consistency in its legal treatment of transgenders, while striking the balance of not having transgenders with a high risk of violence towards women being kept in a transgender prison. The overall message is that it will be decided on a case by case basis.
Offenders already in custody with any history of violence against women will not be moved from the male to the female estate, nor will any newly convicted or remanded transgender prisoner with a similar offending history be placed in the female estate under the present rules
A halt was also put to the transfer of Tiffany Scott, first reported in the Daily Record on Saturday, who is subject to an order for lifelong restriction – reserved for Scotland’s most violent and dangerous offenders , after admitting stalking a 13-year-old girl by sending letters from jail, an offence committed while living as a man. She has a history of attacking female staff.
Calls For Bans Against Violent Transgender Women In Female Prisons
The announcement follows calls from across the political and campaigning spectrum to ban transgender women from female prisons or to create specialist wings for transgender offenders, who make up about 0.2% of the prison population.
The uproar was aimed at stopping violent men who become women following a sex change, from mixing in women prisons.
The Justice Department has thoroughly confirmed that no mixing took place between the criminals who became transgenders and other female inmates.
The justice secretary, Keith Brown, said: “I understand that the issue of any trans woman being convicted of violent and sexual offences is a highly emotive subject and that the public concern is understandable.
“As the first minister pointed out last week, we must not allow any suggestion to take root that trans women pose an inherent threat to women. Predatory men are the risk to women. However, as with any group in society, a small number of trans women will offend and be sent to prison. Therefore, I hope that the measures I am about to highlight will offer reassurance in the ongoing ability of the prison service to manage trans individuals and ensure the safety of all prisoners.”
He added: “We must also never forget that there are victims in these cases. My thoughts remain with them.”
”Neither of the cases that have been highlighted arose from any change to Scottish Government legislation or policy or from any change to the risk assessment procedure operated by the SPS in recent years.
”Each case arose from specific circumstances. We have fully acknowledged the concerns that have been raised in respect of those cases and have responded swiftly. Given the public concern about those cases, it is right that the SPS has acted to bring absolute clarity to the position.
The government said its draft revised policy will be independently assessed by experts in women affected by trauma and violence. We expect the review to be completed in the coming months, and we will ensure that Parliament is kept informed, given the strong interest in the issue.
”The SPS is also now undertaking an urgent lessons learned review in relation to the case of Isla Bryson, with any learning to be applied immediately to existing cases of transgender people in the prison estate and to any cases of those coming into custody. That review will report to the SPS chief executive at the end of this week, and I will write to update the Criminal Justice Committee next week on the outcome of that review. The timescale for any subsequent action will depend on the review’s findings.
‘Until those reviews are complete, no transgender person who is already in custody with any history of violence against women, including those with any history of sexual offences against women, will be moved from the male to the female estate. In addition, no newly convicted or remanded transgender prisoner with any history of violence against women will be placed in the female estate. For clarity, that definition includes any history of violence, including sexual offences.