A Scotland woman believed to have masculine features spent the night in a male prison after authorities mistook her for a man.
In a report by the Independent, police said they were investigating how the woman’s gender was misidentified which caused her to be kept in the men’s facility after she appeared in the Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court on October 21, 2024.
The UK based publication said a police spokesperson said the woman was remanded in custody with incomplete information about her gender.
“We are reviewing our custody procedure to ensure this does not happen again,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, The Telegraph they were informed about the ‘“error’” through a source who described the situation as “shocker”.
“An assumption was made, based on someone’s appearance and not much else. Gender in the prison system has become such a hot topic that management will be mortified by this.
“It was only when the more thorough search was carried out by prison staff that it came to light that the prisoner was missing some vital parts you might expect a man to have,” the source was quoted as saying.
In the same country, a transgender woman was sentenced to eight years for raping two women before transitioning.
Isla Bryson, 32, was sentenced for of raping one woman in 2016 and one in 2019 while he was known as Adam Graham.
The Independent said Bryson was initially housed in a women’s prison before being sentenced in February 2023 .
It was reported that his arrest prompted the Scottish Prison Service to update its admissions policy which required that people should be admitted on the basis of their sex at birth.
sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za
IOL News