Transgender inmate transferred after getting ‘sexually explicit’ note in church

A transgender inmate who is suing the state Department of Corrections has been transferred from Georgia State Prison in Reidsville to a medium-security lockup in Columbus.

The inmate, Ashley Alton Diamond, sued the prison system in February, in part, over concerns for her safety.

In recent weeks, hearings in U.S. District Court in Macon centered on whether Diamond -- who says she has been sexually assaulted in prison -- should be housed at the maximum-security Reidsville lockup. Diamond sought a transfer to another prison.

Last month, a federal judge left it to corrections officials to decide where to imprison Diamond. But Judge Marc Treadwell also said the court should be informed of any developments.

On Friday, the court was told of a May 3 episode at the prison in which Diamond claims she was given a “sexually explicit and threatening” note while attending church, according to a status report filing.

“In addition, Ms. Diamond, through counsel, advised Defendants that both she and her family were receiving letters similar to the one she received at church,” said the report, filed by the state attorney general’s office.

The report went on to say that while the prison system stood by its decision earlier this year to move Diamond from a Milledgeville prison and send her to Reidsville, “housing decisions are fluid, and reassessed as needed.”

Diamond, 36, is now housed at Rutledge State Prison. She has been in prison for three years on Floyd County convictions for theft, obstruction and escape. It could be eight years before she gets out.

In February, when Diamond was being held at the prison in Milledgeville, she filed a federal lawsuit claiming that Georgia prison officials were not allowing her to receive hormone treatments. She also alleged she wasn’t safe.

Her case has been followed closely by The New York Times, which noted the other day that Diamond has previously been locked up at Rutledge and that it was “the only time during her incarceration that she was not sexually assaulted.”

In a statement about Friday’s transfer, one of Diamond’s attorneys, Chinyere Ezie of the Southern Poverty Law Center, said, “We are hopeful this will be a safer housing option.”

Ezie added that since Diamond’s imprisonment in 2012, “Ashley has endured sexual assaults, mistreatment and abuse. We continue to focus on Ashley’s safety and proper care. ... Ashley is an inspiration for transgender people worldwide.”

Information from Telegraph archives was used in this report. To contact writer Joe Kovac Jr., call 744-4397.

This story was originally published May 11, 2015 at 2:17 PM with the headline "Transgender inmate transferred after getting ‘sexually explicit’ note in church ."