GA Transgender Woman Sues To Move Out Of Men's Prison

GEORGIA — Attorneys for a transgender woman from Floyd County are seeking to have her moved to a women’s prison from a men’s prison, where they say she’s been sexually assaulted by both prisoners and staff and has been denied needed medical treatment.

In court filings to a federal judge Friday, lawyers for Ashley Diamond, 43, of Rome said that her feelings of hopelessness have led to multiple attempts at suicide and self-mutilation, according to the Associated Press.

Diamond, imprisoned at Coastal State Prison near Savannah for a parole violation, is said to have identified as female since she was a child. She began hormone therapy at 17, which gave her fuller breasts and a more feminine appearance.

Diamond previously sued Georgia in 2015 over similar allegations. Soon after Diamond sued, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a brief saying that gender identity must be treated as any other medical or mental health condition. That lawsuit was settled in 2016.

Read the story from the Associated Press.