Women’s jail campaigners are demanding that the growing number of trans male offenders should be kept in female jails.
Dr Kate Coleman, of Keep Prisons Single Sex, said that the instances of women identifying as men mid-sentence is a “growing problem”.
But she believes that such prisoners should be treated as women – and that moving them to men’s prisons or a special “trans unit” would be misguided and dangerous.
Coleman spoke out after the Daily Record revealed how killer Nicolle Earley is now living as a man in Scotland’s only all-female prison.
Earley has lived a chaotic life inside and received several extra sentences for violence and intimidation.
She currently faces accusations of punching a prison officer at HMP Stirling in the face over a trivial matter.
But Coleman is adamant that Earley – now known as Kobi – should serve the rest of her time at HMP Stirling.
Coleman said: “The data we have indicates that this is a growing population.
“Whilst the focus, rightly in my view, has been on the risks that males who identify as transgender pose to women in prison, the challenges of adequately and appropriately meeting the needs of females who identify as transgender must be addressed.
“These needs must be met within the female estate.
“I understand that females who identify as men are difficult to manage.
“But there is no quandary about where to house her. She is female and belongs in the female estate. She must be managed in a way that is continuous with the way in which all other female prisoners are managed. Housing her in the male estate is not even a question that should be asked.
“This is for her own safety and for her own benefit as it is in the female estate that she will be able to access the services and programmes that are necessary for her to progress.”
Keep Prisons Single Sex have been strongly supported by JK Rowling. The Harry Potter author ho has led a worldwide backlash against claims, which became mainstream, that sex is not defined by biology and that each person has the right to choose their gender.
The Scottish prison estate has been the focus of worldwide scrutiny after several trans women – notably Isla Bryson – who have committed sex crimes against women were allowed to live as women in female jails.
Bryson raped two women in Clydebank and Glasgow in 2016 and 2019 while known as Adam Graham.
The rapist changed gender while waiting to stand trial.
Bryson, 31, was initially remanded to a women’s jail after being found guilty and sentenced to eight years – but after a backlash was then moved to a men’s facility.
Dr Coleman said: “I disagree that Earley, unlike Bryson and others, is ‘genuinely trans’.
“Whilst I agree that Bryson may have been an opportunist in a way that Earley is not, this does not make Earley a man. Earley’s belief that she is a man should be treated in a way that is continuous with treating mental health issues and symptoms of distress.”
Dr Coleman rejected suggestions that a “trans prison unit” should be built.
She said: “This idea is misplaced. A ‘trans unit’ would not benefit the prisoners who are so few in number that they would risk social isolation.
“Whilst the focus, rightly in my view, has been on the risks that males who identify as transgender pose to women in prison, the challenges of adequately and appropriately meeting the needs of females who identify as transgender must be addressed.
“These needs must be met within the female estate.”
In 2008, Nicolle Earley killed family friend Ann Gray, 63, in her own home in Methil, Fife, after a row over £5 and cigarettes.
Ann died as a result of a head injury after she was knocked to the ground and repeatedly stamped on.
The grandmother also suffered a fractured jaw and broken cheekbone along with a fractured bone in her upper neck.
Earley, of Methil, Fife, was jailed for life in 2010 and was ordered to serve a minimum of 14 years in prison.
She was due to attend a parole hearing in 2021 but that was cancelled because of other attacks on prisoners while inside.
In 2016 – while in court accused of another assault – Earley claimed she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of flashbacks over the murder of Ann Gray.
Earley was given an extra six months at Stirling Sheriff Court for punching another inmate in Scotland’s only all-female jail.
In the same year, Earley was earned another conviction for a similar attack on a different prisoner.
It is thought that Earley has been identifying as a man for more than five years.
She has recently been held in the admissions hall of HMP Stirling, keeping her apart from the general population of long term prisoners.
A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson said: “We do not comment on individuals.
“Our policy on transgender people in custody supports the health, safety, and wellbeing of all people living and working in Scotland’s prisons, by taking an individualised approach to the admission, placement, and management of transgender people.
“We will carefully consider a range of factors, including risk to and from an individual when making decisions about ho best to manage and support them.”
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