Hampton v. Baldwin

Strawberry Hampton, who was born Deon Hampton (plaintiff) was a transgender female incarcerated in an Illinois prison. Due to hormone therapy, Hampton had breasts and was chemically castrated. The Illinois Department of Corrections (DOC) housed prisoners by birth sex but sometimes allowed transgender prisoners to transfer. The DOC housed Hampton in a men’s prison. Hampton reported repeated instances of sexual abuse by prison guards and other prisoners, which were Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) violations. Hampton’s reports were verified, and she was transferred to another men’s prison. The committee handling transfer requests denied Hampton’s requests for transfer to a women’s prison without even interviewing her. Hampton again reported sexual abuse by a prisoner, and the two were separated. For a week and a half, Hampton reported that a different prisoner was aggressively groping her, but officials did nothing. Hampton called a PREA hotline, and her reports were substantiated. Still, prison officials took no action. Hampton attacked the other prisoner and was disciplined. Hampton sued DOC director John Baldwin and others (collectively, the officials) (defendants), alleging violations of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause and the Eighth Amendment. Hampton alleged that prison officials knew she was vulnerable and being attacked repeatedly but had not taken reasonable steps to protect her. Hampton also alleged she had reported constant, severe harassment by prison staff based on her gender identity, including guards forcing her into sexual interactions and using degrading slurs, yet she was not being protected from this either. Hampton moved for a preliminary injunction transferring her to a women’s prison while the lawsuit was pending. After Hampton filed this request, for the first time, the transfer committee found Hampton was too aggressive to be safely housed in a women’s prison but did not consider the context for Hampton’s allegedly aggressive actions. The district court considered Hampton’s preliminary-injunction request.