A federal judge has ordered the Idaho Department of Correction to provide sex reassignment surgery to a transgender inmate convicted of sexually abusing a minor.
Adree Edmo, who was first jailed in 2012, will become the first inmate in Idaho to receive sex reassignment surgery following a decision from U.S. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill, according to East Idaho News.
“Inmates have no choice but to rely on prison authorities to treat their medical needs,” Winmill said in his decision. “This constitutional duty also applies to far less routine, and even controversial, procedures — if necessary to address a serious medical need.”
Judge orders Idaho to give transgender inmate gender surgery https://t.co/wpo7Z2BFRc pic.twitter.com/E8lexrB9S4
— KTVB.COM (@KTVB) December 14, 2018
Edmo, 31, is in prison for sexually abusing a child under the age of 16. Since 2012, the transgender woman has been housed in a men’s prison and is slated to remain behind bars until 2021. Prior to being arrest, Edmo lived and dressed as a woman.
Court documents revealed Edmo was diagnosed with gender dysphoria by a IDOC psychiatrist not long after being incarcerated.
The inmate, it should be noted, has undergone hormone treatment. Regardless, Edmo continues to suffer from “extreme gender dysphoria.”
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“She has presented extensive evidence that, despite years of hormone therapy, she continues to experience gender dysphoria so significant that she cuts herself to relieve emotional pain,” the judge wrote. “With full awareness of Ms. Edmo’s circumstances, IDOC and its medical provider Corizon refuse to provide Ms. Edmo with gender confirmation surgery.
In a statement, Edmo announced feeling “validated” by Winmill’s decision.
“Not having the care I need is like being in a prison within a prison,” Edmo explained. “Even though I am still living, it has felt like I have been dying inside.”