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July 6th 03, 10:15 AM

Everybody needs a hobby...
"JJ" wrote in message
...
Nice try at forging but anyone can see it is from a different isp
moron.

wrote:
By Timothy Cwiek
PGN Contributing Writer
Â© 2003 Timothy Cwiek

After a five-year court battle, state prison officials have agreed
to provide female-hormone therapy to trans woman Jessica Elaine Wolfe,
who is incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution at Graterford.
Wolfe filed a lawsuit against the state Department of Corrections
and various officials on April 30, 1997, seeking trans-related
medications and the ability to present herself as a woman in prison.
The case was settled on July 24, 2002. Terms of the settlement are
confidential, according to court records.
However, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review recently reported that Wolfe
is receiving hormone therapy and other medications.
Wolfe also has received an undisclosed amount of money to settle the
case, said Richard J. Wickersham, a defense attorney in the case.
Sean Connolly, a spokesman for state Attorney General Mike Fisher,
referred all questions to state prison officials.
U.S. District Judge Anita B. Brody, who handled the case, also
declined to comment.
Prison spokeswoman Susan McNaughton confirmed that a state-prison
inmate is receiving Premarin, an estrogen replacement drug, and Lupron
Depot, a medication that decreases testosterone levels.
However, McNaughton declined to identify the inmate, citing privacy
and medical confidentiality rules. She did not refute the Tribune-
Review story.
Wolfe, 39, is serving a 5- to-15-year sentence at Graterford for
raping an 8-year-old girl in 1995. She could not be reached for comment.
Her name was legally changed from James Elliot Wolfe to Jessica
Elaine Wolfe after her incarceration in July 1996, according to court
records.
Wolfe was denied parole in September 2002. Her next scheduled parole
interview is in September 2004, although she may apply for an earlier
parole interview in September 2003, according to state parole-board
records.
Jerry Galinski, a spokesman for the prison, said Wolfe does not have
a cell mate at Graterford. If an inmate harasses Wolfe, he will be
disciplined promptly, he said.
Kristine Holt, a local transgender attorney, praised the settlement.
“It’s a good thing,” Holt told PGN.
“I’m glad the state is providing
medications for her. Medications shouldn’t be withheld from her
just
because she’s a trans woman.”
Holt stopped short of saying Wolfe should be housed in a female
prison.
“I realize it may be difficult to place her in a women’s
prison,”
Holt continued. “But I do hope the state is making some sort of
accommodation for her protection - and I don’t meet 23-hour-a-day
confinement for her.”
Galinski said Wolfe is housed in a section of the prison that has
increased supervision, but she is not confined to her cell more than an
average prisoner.
According to state-prison policy, inmates with penises must be
assigned to male prisons, despite an inmate’s outward appearance
or
gender expression.
There are no prison units specifically set aside for transgender
inmates, according to state-prison policy.
Phyllis Randolph Frye, another transgender attorney, conveyed
support for Wolfe.
“A person is in prison because they’ve done something
wrong,” Frye
said. “But that’s no reason to treat them inhumanely. My
main concern
is the protection of the transgender person. They need to be segregated
without being isolated.”
She questioned why the case ensued for more than five years.
“I don’t understand why prison officials are so mean as
to spend
thousands and thousands of dollars in litigation, rather than give
someone their hormone,” Frye continued. “Who does it hurt,
other than
someone with a trumped-up feeling of control? We need sensitive medical
professionals to help make these decisions.”
McNaughton said prison officials do consult with transgender-related
medical experts, when necessary. She said the state Department of
Corrections has not established a transgender advisory board to assist
with formulating prison policies.

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