NEWTOWN — A transgender inmate has filed a federal lawsuit against the Connecticut prison system for denying her transitional care and for housing her with male inmates.
The Hartford Courant reports that Veronica May Clark says Department of Corrections officials have denied her medical and mental health care since she began her gender transition in prison.
The suit seeks proper care and $500,000 in damages.
Clark says she was told that state policy only allows treatment for inmates who began their gender transition outside of prison.
A 2018 law protecting the rights of transgender inmates is not clear on the policy.
A prisons spokeswoman says the department has procedures to meet the needs of gender-nonconforming individuals.
Clark was convicted of murder for beating a man to death and sentenced to 75 years in 2009.
