Communist
2nd March 2010, 00:22
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San Antonio police officer charged with sexual assault of transgender woman (http://www.examiner.com/x-12237-Transgender--Transsexual-Issues-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d27-San-Antonio-police-officer-charged-with-sexual-assault-of-transgender-man)
(Note: headline and story updated as of February 28--headline changed from "transgender man" to "transgender woman." See latest update at the end of this story.)
A San Antonio police officer is in jail and accused of sexually assaulting a “transgender man,” according to WOIA.com.
Based on the initial information available, it would appear that the victim is a trans man (assigned female at birth, transitioned to male). However, because news reports often fail to use correct pronouns and gender references, there is always the possibility that the victim is a trans woman.
According to the report, the victim alleges that Officer Craig Nash picked him her up on the morning of February 25, handcuffed him her, told him her to lie down in the back of the car, then drove him her to another location and sexually assaulted him her before dropping him her off.
There was enough evidence, including GPS information that linked Nash’s car to the reported scene of the crime and the victim’s identification of Nash in a lineup, to arrest Nash, who is currently being held on a bond of over $25,000 and charged with one count of sexual assault and one count of official oppression.
A major concern of the transgender community is treatment by police officers, who are employed to protect all citizens.
At a recent town hall meeting sponsored by the Mayor’s GLBT Commission in Denver, Colo., and focusing on violence in the trans community, some of the attendees expressed concerns about reporting assaults to police for fear of facing discrimination or additional mistreatment.
The Denver Police Department has created a special unit to handle bias-motivated crimes, including crimes against trans people. Members of the unit were present at the meeting to hear community concerns and answer questions.
Colorado has a hate-crimes law that covers gender identity.
Concerns about interactions with police can make trans people reluctant to report crimes against them, resulting in inaccurate statistics regarding violence and other bias-motivated crimes in the trans community.
These same concerns can make trans people hesitate to come forward as witnesses to other crimes.
It benefits police departments in many ways to initiate sensitivity training for officers and positive interactions with their local trans community.
(Latest update as of February 28: the victim is, in fact, a trans woman and was misidentified by San Antonio media.)
San Antonio police officer charged with sexual assault of transgender woman (http://www.examiner.com/x-12237-Transgender--Transsexual-Issues-Examiner%7Ey2010m2d27-San-Antonio-police-officer-charged-with-sexual-assault-of-transgender-man)
(Note: headline and story updated as of February 28--headline changed from "transgender man" to "transgender woman." See latest update at the end of this story.)
A San Antonio police officer is in jail and accused of sexually assaulting a “transgender man,” according to WOIA.com.
Based on the initial information available, it would appear that the victim is a trans man (assigned female at birth, transitioned to male). However, because news reports often fail to use correct pronouns and gender references, there is always the possibility that the victim is a trans woman.
According to the report, the victim alleges that Officer Craig Nash picked him her up on the morning of February 25, handcuffed him her, told him her to lie down in the back of the car, then drove him her to another location and sexually assaulted him her before dropping him her off.
There was enough evidence, including GPS information that linked Nash’s car to the reported scene of the crime and the victim’s identification of Nash in a lineup, to arrest Nash, who is currently being held on a bond of over $25,000 and charged with one count of sexual assault and one count of official oppression.
A major concern of the transgender community is treatment by police officers, who are employed to protect all citizens.
At a recent town hall meeting sponsored by the Mayor’s GLBT Commission in Denver, Colo., and focusing on violence in the trans community, some of the attendees expressed concerns about reporting assaults to police for fear of facing discrimination or additional mistreatment.
The Denver Police Department has created a special unit to handle bias-motivated crimes, including crimes against trans people. Members of the unit were present at the meeting to hear community concerns and answer questions.
Colorado has a hate-crimes law that covers gender identity.
Concerns about interactions with police can make trans people reluctant to report crimes against them, resulting in inaccurate statistics regarding violence and other bias-motivated crimes in the trans community.
These same concerns can make trans people hesitate to come forward as witnesses to other crimes.
It benefits police departments in many ways to initiate sensitivity training for officers and positive interactions with their local trans community.
(Latest update as of February 28: the victim is, in fact, a trans woman and was misidentified by San Antonio media.)