Trans-identified male felon awarded $350,000 by NYC after suing for being housed with male inmates on Rikers Island

Ali Miles, a biological male felon who identifies as a Muslim woman, has been awarded $350,000 in a settlement after suing New York City over officials' decision to hold Miles in pre-trial detention on Rikers Island with male inmates. Miles spent one month in the facility before being transferred back to Arizona, where Miles was found guilty on numerous charges.

Miles, formerly known as Dylan Miles, alleged in the lawsuit that the inmate had informed the court that Miles was transgender, and that the refusal to house Miles with female inmates amounted to "gender identity discrimination." As part of the settlement, the city maintained that Miles' allegations were untrue, and did not accept any blame.

According to Reduxx, Miles was held on Rikers Island from June to July 2022 after being arrested in New York on an Arizona warrant. After being found guilty of two counts of aggravated harassment per domestic violence, a Class 5 felony, as well as disorderly conduct, harassment, threatening or intimidating, and false reporting to law enforcement, Miles was sentenced to 312 days in jail and three years of supervised probation. 

Over a year after being housed on the penal island, Miles filed the lawsuit against the city, asking for $22 million in compensation. Miles claimed that the judge had agreed to notify the prison that Miles should be placed in the female population, but that when Miles arrived at the facility, no such accommodation was made, with one staff member allegedly saying, "we don't do the trans thing here."

As Reduxx reports, this is far from the first time Miles has filed lawsuits against those who refuse to go along with Miles' gender identity. On at least five occasions, Miles accused various businesses of discrimination, including the bagel shop where Miles had briefly been employed. In that case, Miles alleged that Bagel Point's owner, a Muslim woman, mocked Miles for trying to present as female, and made "unsubstantiated" claims about Miles' work.