Trans woman is paid $160k by New York state after she was ‘misgendered’ by staff at all-male jail where she was an inmate and forced to remove her acrylic NAILS without the proper tools

A trans woman in New York has been awarded a $160,000 settlement after she was ‘misgendered’ by staff at the male-only prison.

Makyyla Holland, a 25-year-old black transgender woman, accused Broome County Correctional Officers of abuse and discrimination after she was arrested on charges of criminal contempt and assault.

She was held in detention for two periods totaling six weeks in 2021 and claims she was physically assaulted during the recording process on January 22, suffering a broken tooth and a painful lump on her head.

Holland says she was assigned to the men’s unit and placed in an isolated cell with glass walls. According to court documents, she was denied access to a shower during her time, which ended February 5, 2021.

Between June 1 and July 2, 2021, she said she was searched by male officers, frisked, had to peel off her acrylic nails without the proper tools, and was ordered to remove her wig, which was glued to her head.

Despite revealing her transgender status multiple times, she says she was placed in men’s housing.

She claimed that she was not given any hormone replacement therapy medication for four weeks and that she was not prescribed any testosterone blockers or antidepressants.

“I was harassed, mocked, misunderstood and worse: Prison staff searched me, beat me up, put me in the men’s section of the prison and withheld my hormones for a while, forcing me to go into a painful withdrawal phase,” said Holland through the New York Civil Liberties Union.

“I just felt like a joke, I was discriminated against because I was a trans woman. As a result, I was at high risk of harassment. I had to adjust to what prison did to me.’

She felt like her life didn’t matter when she was denied medication.

Holland filed a lawsuit in 2021, claiming she was “routinely harassed and misunderstood,” and that pleas “for help and protection from the threats and sexual assault they exposed her to” were ignored.

Following the landmark settlement, which included a $160,000 payment and new LGBTI guidelines for the facility, Holland said she hopes change will come from her experience.

Transgender people in Broome County Jail can now receive transgender health care, be housed in accordance with their gender identity, and be free from harassment and discrimination. Clothing and toiletries will be consistent with an individual’s gender identity, and access to gender-affirming items such as wigs will be provided.

“No one should ever have to go through what I went through at Broome County Jail and I’m so thankful that with this new policy hopefully no one else will ever go through that,” Holland said.

“These policies and similar policies have the potential to impact much of my community and I will continue to fight to ensure that no other trans person in New York or anywhere else has to endure what I have done.”

She said she’d like to see the guidelines picked up in states across the country so she can make sure no one has a similar experience.

“With this policy, I want my trans siblings to know that we have rights. You should feel safe in any living situation you find yourself in. No one is allowed to take your medicines.

‘You have to be able to live from your truth and stay true to who you are. If I had a world, I’d like everyone on my world to just know they mean something.”

Broome County Sheriff Fred Akshar said he is happy to introduce new expectations for the treatment of LGBTI people.

“I am pleased that we have amicably reached a solution that establishes clear LGBTI guidelines, which did not previously exist, to address the rights of LGBTI detainees while ensuring the safety and security of individuals both in the Broome County Correctional Facility live as well as work. ‘ he said.

“It is another important step forward in pragmatically and safely modernizing policies to meet the needs of those we serve and protect as we work to build a better, safer community for everyone in Broome County.”

The Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund says the criminal case against the Netherlands has ended.

A similar policy was implemented at the Steuben County Jail in August 2020 after the NYCLU and TLDEF reached a settlement with the prison.

“Today we celebrate the stunning transgender rights victory of the courageous Makyyla Holland and the NYCLU in their lawsuit against Broome County, sheriff, undersheriff, officers and medical staff,” said Justice and Unity in the Southern Tier (JUST). statement Thursday.

“This is a wonderful result and we look forward to observing its implementation in the county jail and other facilities.”

The treatment of transgender inmates and safety have become a matter of debate after a transgender inmate impregnated two fellow inmates at New Jersey’s only women’s prison.

Demi Minor, who is serving a 30-year sentence for stabbing her former foster father to death, was transferred from Edna Mahan Correctional Facility to Garden State Youth Correctional Facility in June.

Minor, 27, complained that she was mistreated and mistreated by guards during the transfer and was even placed on suicide watch after she attempted to hang herself while being transferred to the GSCF.

In a post on her Justice 4 Demi blog, Minor claimed she was targeted by correctional officers, with one of them mocking her when she asked to be searched by a woman. In a separate post, she claimed she was beaten during the transfer.

She said she was held briefly at the New Jersey State Penitentiary, where guards reportedly called her “a he” more than 30 times.

Minor’s case came to light in April when the New Jersey Department of Corrections revealed that he had impregnated two fellow inmates at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility.

The 800-inmate Mahan facility began housing transgender women — including those yet to undergo gender reassignment surgery — last year following a lawsuit filed by an inmate and the ACLU. There are now 27 trans prisoners.

A source familiar with the prison told DailyMail.com that cell doors remain open during the recreation period, so inmates could theoretically use those periods to sneak into each other’s cells or sneak into a bathroom for sex.