'Scared' and 'traumatized': Walz's support for trans women in Minnesota women's prison 'endangering' inmates

Inmates successful Minnesota's sole women's situation study emotion "scared" and "traumatized" by nan beingness of transgender women successful their surviving quarters – a business that arose aft Gov. Tim Walz's endorsement of a arguable "sue and settlement" statement pinch a left-wing statement past year.

Rebeca Warmbo, a erstwhile inmate astatine nan Women's Correctional Facility successful Shakopee, who spent much than a decade successful and retired of situation connected supplier and robbery charges, now considers herself an advocator for her friends still down bars. Warmbo, 50, keeps successful regular interaction pinch respective women, who've written to her astir their experiences ever since nan trans inmates were transferred in.

"They're successful fear, and they're frightened each nan time, and they consciousness traumatized," Warmbo told Fox News Digital. "Because [some of] these men are activity offenders, and a batch of nan women successful location person been abused aliases had sex offenses done against them."

She added: "They do sexually suggestive things to them, and it's making them each very uncomfortable."

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Tim Walz ushered successful trans inmates successful Minnesota's only women's prison. (Getty Images | Minnesota DOC)

There are 48 transgender group reported crossed each Department of Corrections (DOC) facilities, according to a merchandise past twelvemonth from nan Minnesota DOC. Fox News Digital identified astatine slightest 4 transgender inmates successful nan women's prison. The state's full incarcerated organization is conscionable nether 10,000.

Nathan Charles Johnson, Bradley Richard Sirvio, Sean Windingland and Elijah Thomas Berryman are presently serving sentences successful nan women's installation for felony charges. 

According to DOC records, Sirvio is serving a life condemnation for homicide, Windingland is serving 24 years for criminal intersexual conduct, Berryman is serving a 26-year condemnation besides for criminal intersexual conduct, and Johnson, charged pinch aiding and abetting a burglary, is group to beryllium released successful February 2025.

Warmbo – a self-professed Christian who says she is now sober and studying to beryllium a scientist – said she has written respective letters to her section representatives successful Congress and to nan Biden-Harris management astir nan added "endangerment" incarcerated women now look surviving successful adjacent quarters pinch biologic males. 

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From left, Nathan Charles Johnson, Bradley Richard Sirvio, Sean Windingland, Elijah Thomas Berryman and Christina Lusk.  (Minnesota Department of Corrections)

In summation to Warmbo, Fox News Digital said pinch an inmate presently successful situation who said connected information that her sanction beryllium withheld from publication.

The inmate elaborate really nan prisoners are often excessively intimidated to speak retired astir encounters pinch nan trans women, fearing administrative repercussions and having their privileges revoked. She besides told Fox News Digital nan trans women get their ain rooms, while nan different prisoners are placed 2 to a cell.

All nan prisoners virtually stock nan aforesaid unfastened surviving spaces, including nan showers. The inmate told Fox News Digital successful a telephone telephone that schematic instances of intersexual harassment hap successful nan facility, though Fox News Digital could not independently confirm.

"It's conscionable going to beryllium a immense messiness I spot for Minnesota because of Tim Walz and his schedule connected this," Warmbo said.

Last week, a longtime coach astatine nan Minnesota women's facility, Alicia Beckmann, resigned retired of protestation astatine nan caller policy, nan Independent Women's Forum reported.

Beckmann was reportedly "blindsided" starring up to her 10th day moving astatine nan facility, erstwhile inmate Sirvio and Craig Lusk – who goes by nan sanction Christina – arrived.

"The women are frightened to speak up. Many women are incarcerated because of nan men they walk their clip with, and we each person state of choice, but I guarantee that astir apt 75% of our organization committed a crime because location was violence against them by a man, aliases they felt coerced into doing thing for that man," Beckmann told nan organization.

Gov. Tim Walz made his authorities a ‘trans refuge.’  (Screenshot/ABC)

According to nan DOC's argumentation guidance issued to unit successful April, trans inmates are granted definite privileges.

"Incarcerated group who are transgender, gender diverse, intersex, aliases nonbinary whitethorn petition a single-cell assignment," and they must beryllium "given nan opportunity to ablution separately successful a mode truthful arsenic to forestall viewing by different incarcerated people."

"Facility unit must supply incarcerated group who are transgender, gender diverse, intersex, aliases nonbinary state-issued undergarments accordant pinch their gender personality including immoderate operation of those items up to nan allowable limit if requested," nan archive besides states. 

When it comes to information checks, "pat and unclothed assemblage searches of incarcerated group who are transgender, gender diverse, intersex, aliases nonbinary must beryllium done successful accordance pinch nan gender of nan installation successful which they are assigned," meaning if a trans inmate is housed successful a antheral facility, nan hunt should beryllium conducted by antheral staff. If they are successful a female facility, nan hunt should beryllium conducted by female staff.

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Minnesota is now among 11 states and nan District of Columbia that let transgender inmates to transportation to situation accommodation that lucifer their gender personality and not their biologic sex. (Adobe Stock)

"The section provides incarcerated group who are transgender, gender diverse, intersex, aliases nonbinary pinch due gender-related intelligence wellness and aesculapian services passim their incarceration. The DOC provides aesculapian attraction successful accordance pinch WPATH standards of care," nan memo noted.

Nearly $500,000 successful payer money was paid past twelvemonth by Walz's administration successful what efficaciously was a "sue and settlement" strategy by a left-wing liking group, Gender Justice, which represented Craig "Christina" Lusk 1 twelvemonth aft nan statement revenge a activity favoritism title against nan Minnesota DOC.

As of Jan. 31, Lusk was released from authorities custody and placed nether supervision. The colony reached successful this lawsuit progressive a full of $495,000 distributed among 3 parties. Lusk received $245,903.72, Gender Justice was allocated $198,000 and Robins Kaplan LLP received $51,096.28 for ineligible fees.

In 2023, records provided by OpenTheBooks bespeak that Gender Justice received $448,904, which includes payments from nan DOC and nan $5,000 from the Minnesota Department of Education, though further specifications astir nan second magnitude were not explored.

The complaint alleged nan DOC discriminated against a Lusk for not placing nan inmate successful a women's situation and rejecting requests for sex-change surgeries. 

Gender hormones (Fox News Digital-Hannah Grossman)

Prior to an apprehension successful December 2018 aft being charged pinch possession of meth and sentenced to a five-year term, Lusk underwent hormone therapy and sought "bottom surgery" to region his antheral genitalia.

As of Jan. 31, Lusk was released from authorities custody and placed nether supervision. The colony reached successful this lawsuit progressive a full of $495,000 distributed among 3 parties. Lusk received $245,903.72 and Gender Justice was allocated $198,000.

The colony besides led to an update successful argumentation that avoided nan legislative process, pinch Minnesota’s DOC agreeing to adopt World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) Standards of Care for treating inmates pinch gender dysphoria connected nan payer dime.

"The DOC is constitutionally obligated to supply medically basal attraction for incarcerated people, which includes curen for gender dysphoria," DOC Commissioner Paul Schnell said successful a connection in June 2023. "Based connected nan facts of this circumstantial case, nan incarcerated personification will now person entree to nan aesculapian attraction she needs, she deserves, and we person a ineligible responsibility to provide."

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Minnesota is now among 11 states and nan District of Columbia that let transgender inmates to transportation to situation accommodation that lucifer their gender personality and not their biologic sex. Walz has been an advocator during his clip arsenic politician for trans rights.

Walz, a erstwhile Army National Guardsman and a erstwhile teacher, was 1 of nan first governors to motion into rule a measure making Minnesota a "sanctuary state" for children seeking transgender surgical procedures and hormone prescriptions. This laid nan groundwork for respective of his much progressive LGBTQ policies. 

Neither nan Minnesota Department of Corrections, Gov. Walz's office, nor nan Harris-Walz run responded to Fox News Digital's enquiry by property deadline. 

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