Judge tells court to respect pronouns of rapist who now wants to be known as a woman

A California judge has ordered a court to respect the pronouns chosen by an inmate accused of rape, despite prosecutors’ concerns that the inmate is exploiting legal protections meant for transgender convicts.

Madera County Judge Katherine Rigby ruled last week that prosecutors must refer to transgender inmate Tremaine Carroll, 52, by female pronouns.

Carroll is accused of raping two women and impregnating a third while incarcerated at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla, where she was serving 25 years for robbing a jewelry store.

Carroll was housed in the women-only prison after being transferred from a men’s prison, despite previously admitting kidnapping charges and facing other sexual assault charges.

California’s Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act means she could swap prisons without any evaluation or evidence of a transition, said Madera County District Attorney Sally Moreno.

“This is a person who is not a woman in any sense of the word,” Moreno said ABC7 as she railed against Rigby’s decision.

Moreno said the pronoun issue complicates her ability to prosecute Carroll for rape.

Judge Katherine Rigby said prosecutors must refer to transgender inmate Carroll, 52, with female pronouns

‘This is a particular problem in this case because it is confusing for the jury. In California, rape is a crime that must be committed by a man,” she said.

Supervising Deputy District Attorney Eric DuTemple said the decision was unfair to the alleged victims.

“It’s just absolutely insane that a victim has to go on the witness stand and monitor pronoun use when he’s trying to recount one of the scariest times of his life,” he said.

Carroll is accused of raping two of his cellmates and impregnating another woman.

“After his first cellmate became pregnant and was transferred to Los Angeles, two of his other cellmates complained that he had raped them, so we filed rape charges against this inmate,” Moreno said.

One of the women previously told DailyMail.com how she suffered lasting trauma after allegedly being attacked by Carroll in the shower.

The suspect has since been transferred to Salinas Valley State Prison for Men and is scheduled to appear in court again in January.

The decision has been dismissed by District Attorney Sally Moreno, who said the pronoun issue complicates her ability to prosecute Carroll for rape, as California law states it is a crime that can only be committed by a man.

Carroll is accused of raping two women and impregnating a third while incarcerated at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla.

California’s Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act means she could swap prisons without any evaluation or evidence of a transition, but Carroll has now been transferred back to Salinas Valley State Prison for Men (pictured) in light of the allegations

Women’s rights group Wolf argued that Rigby’s decision could have a chilling effect on the prosecution.

“For lawyers who want to zealously advocate for their clients, rulings that force the use of pronouns make their practice more difficult and dangerous,” the organization said.

“CDCR is committed to providing a safe, humane, respectful and rehabilitative environment for all incarcerated people,” the Department of Corrections said in a statement.

“Senate Bill 132, the Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act, became law on January 1, 2021.

“It allows incarcerated transgender, non-binary and intersex people to request to be housed and searched in a manner consistent with their gender identity.

“CDCR reviews each request to be transferred under Senate Bill 132 to determine whether, based on the individual circumstances, that move would pose a safety and management concern.

“Across all of our institutions, CDCR thoroughly investigates all allegations of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, and sexual harassment in accordance with our zero-tolerance policy and as mandated by the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act. CDCR does not comment on pending litigation.”