US appeals court lifts block on moving trans women to men’s prisons despite violence risk
Trans women inmates could soon be transferred to men’s prisons (Image: stock image via Getty Images)
A federal appeals court has vacated a lower court order that had blocked the US Bureau of Prisons from transferring incarcerated trans women into men’s facilities, raising renewed fears about safety in custody. The change is set out in the appeals court decision.
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overturned preliminary injunctions issued by US District Judge Royce Lamberth in February 2025 and sent the case back to the district court for further proceedings. The ruling was decided 2-1.
Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan and Judge Cornelia Pillard formed the majority, with Judge Raymond Randolph dissenting. The majority said the existing record did not allow it to uphold the injunctions on the narrower, individualised-risk theory advanced on appeal, and remanded the case.
Safety fears after ruling
Advocates have argued that moving trans women into men’s prisons increases the risk of harm. Jesse Lerner-Kinglake, communications director for Just Detention International, said (as per LGBTQ Nation) trans inmates “already had a bullseye on their back — and the federal government knows it,” adding: “The rates of sexual abuse facing the transgender community were astronomical before these new policies. It’s hard to imagine this already abysmal situation getting worse. And yet it will.”
The D.C. Circuit is one of the most influential US federal appellate courts, frequently hearing cases involving federal agencies and executive power. Its decisions can be appealed to the full court and ultimately to the US Supreme Court.
What happens next?
The dispute stems from an executive order signed by Donald Trump on 20 January 2025 that instructed the attorney general to have trans women housed in men’s prisons.
Lamberth’s February 2025 injunction halted transfers, but the D.C. Circuit’s decision on 20 April 2026 vacated that block and returned the case to the district court. The ruling lands alongside other Trump-era fights over trans rights.
One of the lawyers for the plaintiffs, Shannon Minter, told The New York Times: “We’re going to do exactly what the court directed us to do. Go back to the district court judge and ask him to put these individualised findings on the record in a ruling.”
Justice Department spokesperson Emily Covington described the outcome as a win, saying: “Today’s decision is a win for common sense and biology.”
The original filing named 18 plaintiffs, and legal counsel said the number later dropped to 17 because one plaintiff died.
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