City officials are in the process of settling a lawsuit filed by four women who say their privacy rights were violated while sharing a cell with a pre-operative transgender woman in a city prison.
Mark McDonald, a spokesperson for Mayor Nutter, confirmed that efforts are under way to settle the case, but no deal had been struck by press time.
“The settlement has not been finalized, and so I am unable to discuss any details,” McDonald said. “If there is a final, signed deal, I’ll let you know.”
Jabrina T. Barnett, Maria Cachola, Katiria Chamorro and Yazmin Gonzales claim they were placed in danger when they were required to share a cell with a transgender woman at the Riverside Correctional Facility, a city prison.
Last November, they filed suit in federal court, each seeking more than $100,000 in damages.
They contend that the transgender woman — Jovanie Saldana — subjected them to unwanted advances and sexual harassment.
They also claim that Saldana would leer at them and make inappropriate comments about their anatomy.
Their attorney, Brian F. Humble, had no comment for this story.
The plaintiffs were housed with Saldana at various times over a 14-month period at the prison, located in Northeast Philadelphia, according to the lawsuit.
“Prison workers should have noticed [Saldana’s gender] and their supervisors are at fault for not ensuring that the facility was operated properly,” the lawsuit states.
The suit lists about 60 individuals and/or entities as defendants, including Louis Giorla, commissioner of the Philadelphia Prison System.
Giorla declined to comment about the lawsuit.
“Defendants’ actions exceeded the normal standards of decent conduct and were malicious, willful, oppressive, outrageous and unjustifiable,” the suit states.
The alleged failure of prison workers to ascertain the biological gender of Saldana produced a “state-created danger” for the plaintiffs, according to the lawsuit.
Saldana was housed at the facility from June 2010 to August 2011 — when her biological gender became known to officials after she complained about allegedly being forced to perform oral sex on a guard, according to the suit.
In October 2011, Saldana pleaded guilty to robbery and was sentenced to five-years’ probation.
She couldn’t be reached for comment.
On June 13, defense attorney Stephen E. Siegrist filed a motion seeking the release of Saldana’s medical records to determine if health-care providers at the prison knew that Saldana had male genitalia.
On June 27, U.S. District Judge Eduardo C. Robreno granted the request — even though Saldana isn’t a defendant in the case, and she didn’t authorize the release of her medical records.
“All information [in the medical chart] must be kept confidential and used only for purposes of this litigation and must not be disclosed to anyone except parties to this litigation and the parties’ counsel of record,” Robreno stated in his order.
When the litigation ends, the records must be returned to Saldana’s health-care provider or be destroyed, Robreno added.
Siegrist declined to comment about his request for the records.
Shawn Hawes, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Prison System, acknowledged that prison officials erred in not strip-searching Saldana during her incarceration at Riverside.
Hawes said officials assumed Saldana had female genitalia because of her outward appearance.
“Inmate Saldana was not properly searched when admitted to Riverside,” Hawes told PGN. “Had the search been according to policy, Saldana’s housing would have been given the appropriate consideration.”
Hawes also said prison officials rely on the opinion of clinicians before deciding where to house a transgender inmate.
“If a determination is made that a transgender inmate would be in danger or unable to safely be placed in general population, they — like any other inmate — are placed in protective custody or administrative segregation,” Hawes added.
Hawes had no comment on the lawsuit, or whether it would impact future decisions related to the housing of transgender inmates.
She also said prison authorities don’t release an inmate’s medical records to a third party unless the inmate authorizes such a release — or a judge orders it.
Upon admission to a city prison, all inmates have blood drawn and tested for syphilis. The results are placed in their medical chart, Hawes said.
An inmate’s blood isn’t tested for HIV, but inmates are given the option of having an oral swab to determine if they’re HIV-positive, Hawes said.
The results of the swab are placed in the inmate’s medical chart. If an inmate declines the swab, that fact is noted in his or her medical chart, Hawes said.
She added that said inmates aren’t offered the opportunity to self-identify as being comfortable with a transgender cellmate.
“Although on its face this seems like a sensible idea, vulnerable inmates could be coerced into making or agreeing to such a request,” Hawes said. “Predators are often not found out until it’s too late.”