A woman was allegedly unfairly sent to an all-male prison and forced to spend the night there because she had “masculine traits.”
The prisoner was sent to the high security prison HMP Perth during the night of October 21 and was only transferred the following day to Cornton Vale, the only women’s prison in Scotland, according to the Telegraph.
Police Scotland and the Scottish Prison Service have since launched a review of procedures.
The woman was remanded in custody after appearing at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court, where she was arraigned as a man, after which she was taken to HMP Perth by the court’s custody team.
This comes after the Scottish Prison Service changed its rules regarding transgender prisoners following the Isla Bryson scandal, in which a rapist previously named Adam Graham was initially sent to a women’s prison.
The prisoner was sent to high-security prison HMP Perth (pictured) overnight on October 21 and was only moved the next day to Cornton Vale, the only women’s prison in Scotland, according to the Telegraph.
By the time the error was discovered, it was allegedly too late to transport her to Cornton Vale (pictured), so the prisoner was rushed into segregation overnight.
According to the new police, prisoners should initially be sent to a prison that corresponds to their biological gender, but this did not happen with the woman who was sent to HMP Perth, who is biologically female.
“This is a complete disgrace for everyone involved,” a source told the Telegraph.
‘Taking a woman to a men’s prison and leaving her there is a surprise. An assumption was made based on someone’s appearance and not much else.
The source added that the woman’s biological sex only came to light when prison staff carried out a more thorough search.
By the time the mistake was discovered, it was allegedly too late to transport her to Cornton Vale, so the prisoner was rushed to a segregation center at HMP Perth overnight.
For Women Scotland, a campaign group, said the incident highlighted “sloppy recording and reporting about sex” versus a person’s gender identity.
The group added that the prisoner sent to HMP Perth “has definitely been at risk”.
A Police Scotland spokesperson confirmed that an individual was remanded in custody “with incomplete information regarding their gender”, adding that the force was reviewing its custody procedure following the incident.
A spokesperson for the Scottish Prison Service said they had procedures in place to keep all prisoners safe when a new one is admitted, including separating the new arrival from the general prison population “where appropriate”.
