No waste here

Free Sex-Changes For Inmates:

Your tax dollars, their genitalia

By: Debbie Bitzan, Editor-in-Chief

Posted: 4/9/08

Michelle Kosilek is a woman trapped inside of a man's body. Her prison of testosterone and body hair seems to be worse for her than the actual prison cell in which she lives. A convicted murderer, Kosilek is on a mission: a taxpayer-funded sex-change to relieve her of the inner anxiety caused by her male genitalia.

Currently serving a life sentence in Massachusetts, Robert "Michelle" Kosilek is pursuing a legal case. Incarcerated in 1990 after strangling his wife to death during a violent domestic dispute involving hot tea and his genitalia, Robert legally changed his name to Michelle in 1993. In 2000, she sued the Department of Corrections, accusing them of cruel and unusual punishment for not allowing her to have a sex-change operation. She was diagnosed with gender identity disorder and began receiving court-ordered "treatment" in 2002, treatment that stopped just short of an actual sex-change operation.

The so-called "treatment" that Michelle has been receiving now for over five years includes laser hair removal, hormone treatments, and psychotherapy- all at Massachusetts' taxpayers' expense. In 2006 however, Kosilek was disappointed and had been left wanting: the testosterone blockers had seemed to stop working as effectively as they had been. "My breasts have shrunk, genitals have regained previous size and function, facial hair is thicker and scalp hair is thinner, all related to an elevated testosterone level," Michelle wrote in a statement to the court. She sued the Department of Corrections a second time, in order to receive improved hormone treatments.

Although the case has yet to be ruled upon, Kosilek has pushed onward, requesting a sex-change operation which, if not provided by the State of Massachusetts, will be addressed by the federal courts system. Senator Scott Brown created legislation in the late '90s which would ultimately prevent Massachusetts from providing sex-change operations for inmates, but the law was never passed. Now, as Kosilek pursues this pricey medical procedure, all that stands in his way is the Department of Corrections. Massachusetts state law currently does not allocate funds for inmate sex-changes, but the doctor recommended sex-change for which Kosilek is asking could be made possible if the federal courts find that it's medically necessary.

Gender identity disorder is proven to have negative effects on the quality of life one leads when afflicted with the mental illness. It can lead to various other psychological disorders such as severe depression and anxiety. Kosilek herself has attempted suicide twice, which some taxpayers wonder about whether or not this is actually a concern that needs to be addressed in reference to a convicted murderer. A sex-change operation costs approximately $20,000 and the State of Massachusetts has already spent over $50,000 having Kosilek psychoanalyzed during previous investigations.

The Massachusetts Department of Corrections is citing security issues as a reason to prevent Kosilek from having a sex-change operation, explaining that she will become a target for sexual assault at the all-male prison in which she resides. If this claim is stated in proceedings, Kosilek will pursue her case to the federal level, forcing the American public to deal with an issue which is almost unfathomable.

Although, currently, this case applies to Massachusetts taxpayers only, the decision made in court will set precedent for similar cases in the future. Transgender inmates across the nation are awaiting the outcome of this case; one can imagine how quickly others will pursue a free sex-change if Kosilek is granted hers.
It is hard to imagine a day when part of my paycheck provides elective surgery to sexually confused convicts. Instead of increasing the amount of spending that goes into correctional facilities, we need to be taking a look at where we can extract savings. Reform is needed in short order. Gender identity disorder is a serious mental illness that needs to be acknowledged and treated; however, once you have landed yourself in prison, you forfeit your right to elective treatments like electrolysis and sex-changes. Most hardworking taxpayers would expect that this would be an obvious non-issue, after all, as Senator Scott Brown puts it, "When you go to prison, you lose some rights. You also lose your rights to get a sex change operation."