Oregon not required to move all trans-identified males to women's prisons, must decide on case-by-case basis: federal appeals court

The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has temporarily blocked an order requiring the state of Oregon to house men in women's prisons. This comes after a lower court judge sided with two trans-identifying male inmates who demanded to be moved to female-only facilities, claiming that they were subjected to sexual harassment and violence in the men's prison.

The trans plaintiffs won a preliminary injunction in April, which was granted by US Magistrate Judge Mark Clarke. When handing down his order, Judge Clarke said that the Oregon Department of Corrections had been housing 90 percent of men who claim to be transgender in male prisons, despite the state statute allowing inmates to be in facilities based on gender identity. He ordered the state to move all trans male inmates into women's facilities.

The appeal was filed by the Oregon Department of Justice, which said that the majority of the alleged trans male inmates either did not come out as transgender or did not express a desire to be housed with women. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the Oregon DOJ an administrative stay.

"We appreciate the Ninth Circuit's swift action in granting an administrative stay while it considers our motion and look forward to continuing with the appeal," said Oregon Department of Justice spokesperson Jenny Hansson in a statement.

Oregon attorneys wrote in the appeal filing: "The court issued a mandatory preliminary injunction under the Eighth Amendment that micromanages the state's administration of its prison system for transgender women (adults in custody) under terms both vague and overbroad. The court also provisionally certified a class of all transgender women in ODOC custody and then ordered the disclosure of their personal information otherwise protected by Oregon law — including their names and gender identities — without their consent to the individual named plaintiffs' counsel."

Oregon's prison system has been at the center of controversy over its trans inmate policies, particularly concerns for the safety of women. In June, a convicted pedophile, rapist, and killer launched a lawsuit to be moved into the women's prison facility. There have been several similar cases.
 

Oral arguments are scheduled for August 27 in Pasadena, California.