Trans-identified male killer Dana Rivers moved to California women’s prison after murdering lesbian couple and their son

On June 16, Rivers, a 68-year-old male, was transferred to Central California Women's Facility, which is the largest female institution in the state located in Chowchilla, California, records show.

Rivers was sentenced to life in prison last year for the gruesome murders of a lesbian couple and their teenage son in 2016. The judge said during sentencing that it was the "most depraved crime I ever handled in the criminal justice system in 33 years."

Rivers was convicted of shooting the victims to death in their Oakland home before setting fire to their garage on his way out. He stabbed one of the women 47 times, disfiguring her body to the point the victim was no longer recognizable, according to court documents.

The California state legislature passed the Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act (SB-132), which allows trans-identifed men to serve their prison sentences in female-only prisons. The bill reads that "CDCR does not determine an incarcerated person's gender identity. Every incarcerated person self-identifies. When a person first arrives to a CDCR institution or upon transfer, pursuant to SB 132, the individual will be asked if they identify as transgender, non-binary or intersex."

Since the bill was enacted in 2021, 47 biological males have been permitted to transfer to women’s prisons while none of the 12 requests by biological females to transfer to a men’s facility have been granted so far.

Democratic California Senator Scott Wiener sponsored the bill, which grants biological male criminals the right to request transfer to women’s prisons based upon a self-declared female gender identity, as well as the right for these males to request to be searched by female prison staff.