A sex offender who was born male but identifies as female despite not having surgery, has been moved to a women’s prison in Limerick.
It is believed to be the first time that a transgender prisoner has been accommodated by the prison service.
She was originally detained in the Dóchas Centre in Dublin, but has since been transferred to the mid-west.
The inmate was born male but is now recognised as female under the Gender Recognition Act 2015.
It is understood that she has not undergone any transgender surgery, nor is she receiving hormonal therapy.
However, she was in possession of a gender recognition certificate by the time her case came before the court last July, and is now being accommodated with other female prisoners.
It is understood that the prison has assigned a high level of monitoring and supervision of the inmate in the interests of protecting both her and her fellow detainees.
“The Irish Prison Service must accept all prisoners into custody into whatever prison a judge orders,” said Minister Charlie Flanagan in a response to a parliamentary question from Aontú TD Peadar Tóibín.
“Upon committal, all prisoners are brought to the reception/committal unit of the prison, where there is an opportunity to provide personal and physical details as part of the regular committal interview process,” he explained.
“The assessment of the prisoner’s needs may require the prison governor to consider the biological gender, legal gender, gender identity, transgender, gender expression, sexual orientation or gender recognition legislation.”
In such cases, the governor can make recommendations regarding the placement of the inmate within the prison system with regard to protection issues, security issues, available accommodation, and the healthcare needs of the prisoner.
A spokesperson for the IPS said that it cannot comment on individual prisoners, but that all detainees are accommodated in accordance with judges’ orders.
It was reported earlier this year that the transgender inmate had been given protection status by the prison service, and is being accompanied by two officers at all times while in the common areas of the detention facility.
In March, a specialised transgender prison unit was opened in the United Kingdom, in which transgender inmates are detained without access to other prisoners.
It was initially set up in a wing of a female prison in Surrey to accommodate three inmates who had transitioned to being women and held gender recognition certificates.
