Transgender Woman Transferred To Male Prison After Allegedly Impregnating Two Women In Prison

It was reported in April that Minor’s partners were pregnant with a then-unidentified trans prisoner. NJ Advance Media reports that the nature of their relationships have been described as “consensual” by Dan Sperrazza, external affairs executive director of New Jersey’s Department of Corrections — though the state prohibits even consensual relationships between inmates.

After the institution learned of the pregnancies, Minor and the two other women were put in “some form of solitary confinement,” Advocate reports. Minor later learned that she was now considered a security threat and given notice that she would be transferred to a vulnerable inmates’ unit at Garden State Youth Correctional Facility.

This transfer could be incredibly dangerous for Minor. According to a tweet by Justice 4 Demi, she was “surprise transferred to Edna Mahan in 2020 while earnestly requesting hormones and gender affirming items, things supply chains didn’t exist for in a men’s prison.” Now, according to the website, she may not have access to those “hormones, gender affirming items, gender appropriate housing, and surgery.”

Justice 4 Demi also noted that this isn’t necessarily an unprecedented situation for Edna Mahan.

“To be clear, Edna Mahan has housed pregnant inmates before,” its statement reads. “Edna Mahan has had inmates caught in romantic relationships before. None of this has ever constituted a security threat.” 

In a letter penned by Minor on the website, she explained that she attempted to hang herself in the van taking her to Garden State, Advocate reports. She was then placed on suicide watch when she arrived. The 27-year-old alleges that she was beaten during the transfer and that inmates at Garden State have harassed her.

Additionally, whether or not Minor impregnated these women is dubious. According to Advocate, it’s not clear whether or not Minor was on hormone therapy, which most likely would have barred her from being able to get anyone pregnant. She (or someone on her behalf) tweeted about her hormone treatment being delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but that was back in 2020.

It’s also important to note that a federal inquiry by the U.S. Justice Department in 2020 found that prisoners at Edna Mahan had accused staffers at the institution of sexual abuse and exploitation for decades, NJ Advance Media reports.

According to Justice for Demi, Minor was sexually abused while in foster care. She received a manslaughter charge at 16 years old after “an act of misdirected hostility in which she killed her former foster father whom she wrongly blamed at the time for the sexual abuse she suffered while under his care.”

While incarcerated, she’s taken paralegal courses and helped other inmates with legal matters. She’s also helped some receive gender-affirming items.

Minor is looking forward to taking over Justice 4 Demi when she’s out of prison, and plans to “devote her life to reforming the juvenile justice system,” the website states.

She’ll be eligible for parole in 2037.