At a Glance
Date Filed:
Current Status
The Center for Constitutional Rights and partners filed a brief of amicus curiae in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of Ms. Gladney on October 21, 2020.
Our Team:
- Chinyere Ezie
Co-Counsel
Lambda Legal
Boies Schiller & Flexner LLP
Client(s)
Amici include 16 organizations working in support of gender and LGBTQIA+ rights and justice
Case Description
The Center for Constitutional Rights, Lambda Legal, and Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP filed an amicus brief with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of 16 non-profit and grassroots organizations dedicated to eradicating discrimination and violence against transgender individuals. The brief voices support for plaintiff Ms. Gladney, a transgender woman incarcerated in a men's prison in Arizona, who was sexually assaulted after another prisoner entered her housing unit without permission. We argue that the federal government has a responsibility under the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) and the Eighth Amendment to protect vulnerable incarcerated people, including transgender prisoners, and that it cannot evade liability for harm committed against prisoners in its care by citing the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA).