Trans Police

It must be really hard to be a trans person and to be a police officer.

NBC 5 Exclusive: Chicago Police Department's Only Out Transgender Officer Goes On Record

Officer Megan Woods is the only known out transgender officer within the Chicago Police Department

NBC Chicago

By Chris Hushd 

June 25, 2020

As Chicago nears what was supposed to be the popular Pride parade this weekend, one of the city’s only known out transgender police officers is speaking out.

Officer Megan Woods, a 17-year veteran of the Chicago Police Department,says she hopes her story provides hope for others during uncertain times.

[…]

“People really respected being macho and masculine,” Officer Woods said, explaining why she didn’t tell her family or colleagues for years. “It literally led me down some very dark roads. I’ve struggled with alcoholism and suicide attempts.”

[…]

“You can see their attitude change right away, especially when I come out of vehicle and they realize there’s an LGBT person in an LGBT car,” Ofc. Woods said. “Their perceptions change, and they realize they have a voice.”

I have met a couple of trans officers here in Connecticut and to say the least they have had a bumpy road, I believe both have filed complaints with the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO), and I have met Hartford’s LGBTQ+ liaison officer, officer Kelly Baerga who is a lesbian and she has also had problems with other officers.

Hartford police release internal affairs report on harassment complaint

HARTFORD — The Hartford Police Department has released its report following an internal investigation into alleged inappropriate comments made by a superv…

Fox 61

Author: Samara Abramson

April 10, 2019

HARTFORD -- The Hartford Police Department has released its report following an internal investigation into alleged inappropriate comments made by a supervisor, toward a female officer.

Officer Kelly Baerga was the LGBTQ liaison for the Hartford Police Department. In May 2018, she alleged that her then supervisor, Sergeant Andrew Rodney, made repeated inappropriate comments to her over an eight-month period.

Baerga accused the department of having a culture that makes many female officers feel unsafe. In one instance, Baerga accused Rodney of making a comment that she said was meant to ‘out’ her to a colleague.

It has to be hard to be LGBTQ police officers working in such a macho environment.