De facto punishment of transgender individuals in the penal system.

[BarstowCowboy]

49. I respect that you have skin in this game

I respect that you have skin in this game and that this is not just an academic exercise for you. A transgender may or may not be a violent person. I think that we assume too often that just because a person is a prisoner that they're violent. That isn't true, given all the people incarcerated for drug offenses and other non-violent crimes. As I understand it, prisoners are grouped and housed according to a variety of factors, which tends to put violent and predatory prisoners in areas apart from less violent and less predatory inmates. I don't think people should be forced to live in solitary confinement based on their gender identity, and I don't think that gender identity necessarily determines a person's potential for victim hood. I doubt that Kristin Beck would have trouble defending herself if she were a prisoner and chose to live in a male unit.