The transgender prisoner who got two female inmates pregnant at an all-women’s prison in New Jersey is behind bars for killing their foster parent, it has been revealed.
Demitrius Minor, incarcerated at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility, confessed online to impregnating two inmates.
One of whom, Latonia Bellamy, 31 is serving a life sentence and will give birth in early autumn.
She said the pair had found “love in a hopeless place,” quoting a line from the Rihanna song in an online blog titled “Freedom, Love, Pregnancy and Trauma".
In the essay, Bellamy insisted that while sex was prohibited at the facility, which houses 27 transgender prisoners and over 800 women altogether, she was not “forced to do anything" that she "did not want to do".
A view of New Jersey
Wiki Commons
Bellamy wrote: “Despite it not being permitted I fell in love and had consensual sex with a woman who is trans. Consensual sex is a prohibited act in Edna Mahan.
“I did what is natural to every human being [I] formed a natural and genuine bond that let to an extensive amount of support, understanding and love.”
Minor was just 16 when they broke into Theotis Butts's, their foster father's home in Gloucester Township, New Jersey.
They stabbed Butts, 69, several times and then fled to New York where they were arrested.
William Sullivan, president of the union that represents most of the state’s correctional officers, told DailyMail.com that the pregnancies are not surprising.
He said: "We foresaw this in 2019 when we filed an injunction to stop the transfer of inmates to the women’s facility that identify as transgender."
Mr Sullivan said: “We cautioned this would probably end up badly, meaning with pregnancies.
“There’s congregate showers, recreation, and we can’t watch all 800 inmates every single second of the day”
ACLU legal director Jeanne LoCicero defended the transgender policy
ACLU-NJ.org
New Jersey's Department of Corrections said they are now launching an investigation into the pregnancy.
The facility, whose impending closure was announced last year, changed their transgender policy in July 2021 following a lawsuit brought by a transwoman and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Jersey.
Edna Mahan decided to allow the admission of transgender women who have not yet undergone sex reassignment.
ACLU legal director Jeanne LoCicero defended the policy on Tuesday, saying it ensured the rights of trans prisoners were not violated.
Mr LoCicero said to NJ.com: "[It's] in line with New Jersey's strong anti-discrimination laws that prevent discrimination and harassment on the basis of gender identity."
DOC's external affairs executive director Dan Sperrazza added that the pregnant women had engaged in intercourse willingly, following several accusations of abuse at the jail.
He said: "While DOC cannot comment on any specific disciplinary or housing decisions that may be considered in light of these events, the Department always reserves all options to ensure the health and safety of the individuals in its custody."
The union that represents prison officers at the facility issued a statement slamming the policy which allows transgender females at Edna Mahan.
The union's president said: "We opposed this policy change believing it would be detrimental to the general population of female inmates being housed at Edna Mahan and also bring added stress to our correctional police officers assigned to this institution."