Trans woman abused in jail wins landmark settlement

When DeAnna LeTray, a trans woman in New York, was arrested after calling the police during a domestic incident at her home, county jail authorities forcibly removed her wig, subjected her to a cavity and strip search, sexually assaulted her, and placed her with male inmates.

She claims the arrest occurred after officers misgendered and verbally abused her, saying, “We can’t let you walk the streets looking and dressed like a woman.” LeTray told City&State, “That night, when that happened, it completely changed my life. When I was in the jail cell after the assault, I wanted to die. That’s how horrible it was.” Following this, she won a landmark lawsuit.

In the aftermath of her 2017 arrest and assault, LeTray initiated legal action against the Watertown Police Department and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s office. As part of the settlement, both entities are now required to uphold measures preventing discrimination and violence against transgender, gender non-conforming, nonbinary, and/or intersex (TGNCNBI) individuals.

“I was abused because of who I am by those who were supposed to protect me, and I don’t wish that on anyone,” said LeTray, represented by the New York Civil Liberties Union and Legal Services of Central New York. “These settlements make me feel heard and will allow me to move forward with my life, despite the trauma I endured. Most importantly, they will put other counties and police departments on notice so that the abuse I endured never happens to anyone again.”

She added, “I was lucky enough to survive this, but other trans people might not be as lucky.”

As ‘LGBTQ Nation’ reports, the settlement requires the Watertown Police Department to implement explicit guidelines ensuring the proper treatment of TGNCNBI individuals, including using correct names, titles, and pronouns. It also mandates respectful search and booking processes consistent with a person’s gender identity, with penalties for officers against whom gender-based discriminatory profiling complaints are upheld.

The Jefferson County Correctional Facility must accommodate TGNCNBI individuals according to their gender identities, with few exceptions, and conduct searches accordingly. Additionally, jail staff must respect their gender identity in various contexts, such as name and pronoun use.

The agreement also mandates medical and mental healthcare free from sex, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation discrimination, providing access to treatment for gender dysphoria and gender-affirming items.

NYCLU staff attorney JP Perry stated, “It’s our position that every county and every police department should have a policy like this. They really should be standard practice in this day and age in New York.”

This settlement coincides with state lawmakers' efforts to pass a long-delayed bill to institute uniform training policies statewide addressing the treatment of trans, nonbinary, and intersex individuals in custody, although the legislation has yet to be approved.

Sponsored by state Sen. Julia Salazar (D), the bill would require correctional facilities across the state to adopt policies similar to those Jefferson County agreed to implement.

Salazar noted that a resurgence of anti-trans rhetoric, partly inspired by the Trump campaign and his Republican allies, has increased the urgency for reform. She emphasised to supporters of other fundamental rights, such as reproductive freedom, but who oppose trans and gender-conforming people's rights, “These fights are inextricably linked.”