January 26th 2023
Transgender rapist Isla Bryson to be moved from women's prison
by bcc news
A trans woman who raped two women before she changed gender will not serve her sentence in a female jail, Scotland's first minister has said.
Isla Bryson was remanded to Cornton Vale women's prison after being convicted of carrying out the rapes when she was a man called Adam Graham.
Bryson decided to transition from a man to a woman while awaiting trial.
Nicola Sturgeon has now said Bryson will be removed from the prison soon and will not serve her sentence there.
She was expected to be moved to a male wing of a male prison on Thursday afternoon.
Bryson is due to be sentenced next month after being convicted on Tuesday. It is thought to have been the first time a trans woman has been convicted of raping women in Scotland.
But where that sentence should be served has been the subject of heated debate, with concerns being raised about the safety of other women in the female jail if Bryson was placed there.
The Scottish Parliament passed legislation last month aimed at making it easier for people to change their legally-recognised sex, but Ms Sturgeon has said the changes did not play any part in the Bryson case.
The Gender Recognition Reform Bill has been blocked by the UK government over its potential impact on equalities laws that apply across Scotland, England and Wales.
Speaking at First Minister's Questions in the Scottish Parliament, Ms Sturgeon said she agreed that it was not possible to have a rapist within a women's prison.
Referring directly to the Bryson case, she said: "It would not be appropriate for me, in respect of any prisoner, to give details of where they are being incarcerated.
"But given the understandable public and parliamentary concern in this case, I can confirm to parliament that this prisoner will not be incarcerated at Cornton Vale women's prison.
"I hope that provides assurance to the public."
The first minister said any prisoner who posed a risk of sexual offending was segregated from other prisoners including while a risk assessment was carried out.
She said: "There is no automatic right for a trans woman convicted of a crime to serve their sentence in a female prison even if they have a gender recognition certificate.
"Every case is subject to rigorous individual risk assessment and the safety of other prisoners is paramount."
Ms Sturgeon said she expected that Bryson would not be at Cornton Vale in Stirling by the end of a 72-hour segregated assessment period, which would end on Thursday.
The first minister also stressed it was careful that people "do not, even inadvertently, suggest that trans women pose an inherent threat to women", adding: "Predatory men, as has always been the case, are the risk to women."
Speaking to journalists outside the chamber, Ms Sturgeon said she had not given any "formal direction" to the Scottish Prison Service on removing Bryson from Cornton Vale.
A spokesman for the first minister would not say if it was now Scottish government policy to bar all rapists from female prisons.
Scottish Justice Secretary Keith Brown said on Wednesday that he trusted the prison service to decide on the correct venue for trans prisoners.
Cornton Vale was until recently Scotland's only women's jail, but is being replaced by a series of smaller purpose-built facilities across the country - including HMP Stirling, which is being built on the same site.
