Trans-Youth In An Adult Prison

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a trans-girl in an adult women’s prison, here is a follow-up on her,

Transgender CT teen writes court of her living conditions in prison
CT MirrorBy: Jacqueline Rabe Thomas
April 16, 2014

Since being sent to an adult prison eight days ago, 16-year-old Jane Doe has spent 22 to 23 hours a day in a prison cell.

Jane – a transgender, self-identifying girl whose name has not been released because she is a minor – has had no contact with anyone her age or been given any educational instruction, according to court documents she filed Monday about her living conditions.

An officer watches her in her cell 24 hours a day.

Jane is not incarcerated for a crime serious enough for her to be charged as an adult. She was sent to live at York Correctional Institution from the state’s juvenile justice system because the Department of Children and Families says it has no appropriate place to treat this “uniquely dangerous” youth. A spokesman said the placement is necessary to avoid endangering other committed youths and DCF staff.

She has not been charged with any crime, she has not been convicted of any crime but she is basically being kept in solitary confinement.

What she has done is what many other youths in the custody of DCF have done, strike other children in DCF custody, and strike DCF workers but they have not received this punishment, she is the first child to confined in an adult prison in the 14 years this law has been effect.

She writes,

I can feel myself growing more and more isolated, frustrated, and feeling alone in my current isolation,” she wrote the court. “I need to be given treatment and services specific to my needs. I need to deal with the trauma I’ve experienced in my life. This prison cannot do that for me.”
[…]
I can feel myself growing more and more isolated, frustrated, and feeling alone in my current isolation,” she wrote the court. “I need to be given treatment and services specific to my needs. I need to deal with the trauma I’ve experienced in my life. This prison cannot do that for me.”

She has been raped many times over, including at the DCF facility where she was sent to live. She has been sold as a sex slave and addicted to drugs and what has DCF done? They have basically written her off and washed their hands of her.

According to Think Progress,

After being sent away from her mother’s house to her grandmother’s residence, the youth writes that a cousin would coerce her into anal sex that caused her to lose control of her bowels. An uncle routinely beat her, and an aunt allegedly told her, “you’re a boy, what the fuck is wrong with you!” when she caught the child, then 11, wearing her lipstick and dress.

The youth allegedly endured instances of sexual abuse at two juvenile therapeutic facilities to which the DCF transferred her — at the Eagleton School in Massachusetts and Connecticut Children’s Place. Staff members at both facilities forced the girl into performing oral sex on them, the affadavit states.

She was targeted for even more sexual abuse after returning to the care of her mother at age 14. She became addicted to crack and involved in prostitution after moving to an aunt’s home, which landed her in several juvenile detention facilities.

Here is the DCF Commissioner defending their actions,



It is time for the DCF to do their job, protect the youth in their care, and give proper healthcare to them.

You can help by becoming a foster parent or a mentor, you can contact True Colors here in Connecticut or a family and youth family agency in your state to become a foster parent or mentor.

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Update 5:00PM

It seems like there might be some movement in the case,

Talks Begin Privately To Move Transgender Youth Out Of Prison
By JOSH KOVNER
The Hartford Courant
April 17, 2014

With criticism mounting each day a transgender girl stays in adult prison with no criminal charges, advocates and officials with the Department of Children and Families are starting to talk privately about getting the 16-year-old out of prison and crafting a suitable treatment program.
[...]
But there may be a break in the impasse.

State Child Advocate Sarah Eagan said Thursday morning that there have been preliminary discussions about removing the youth from prison and fashioning treatment in an age-appropriate setting.

"There's some positive conversation taking place,'' Eagan said. "I think folks on all sides are looking for a way to move forward in a way that supports this youth and addresses any safety concerns."