Gays And Lesbians In The Criminal Justice System Essay Example

the two men were being sentenced to the death mainly because they had killed a gay man. Henderson and McKinney were finally convicted of first-degree murder and given life imprisonment.

2.2 Stonewall Inn case

In June 1969, four plainclothes and two patrol officers together with additional two detectives came the Stonewall Inn to detain homosexual customers. Just a few minutes before the raid there were nearly 200 patrons in the establishment, and before the policemen could proceed with the raid, news of the raid trickled out and the numbers of patrons surprisingly increased to about 2000 individuals. With the news about the raid spreading out, the population increased while homeless young men began engaging police in a fight.

The fights grew into riots with mainstream anti-homophobe organizations coming in. It is widely believed that the Stonewall Inn case was one of the major motivating factors towards the formation of LGBT political movements (Haider & Rimmerman, 2008).

2.3 Juvenile LGBT

The first juvenile court in the U.S. was established in 1899 in Chicago with the aim of providing therapy and rehabilitating the youths in an effort to address major behavioral problems affecting them. The juvenile justice system has high numbers of gays, lesbians, transgender, and gender nonconforming youths with about 300, 000 new gays and transgender youths being detained yearly (Angela, 2010). This is nearly 7% of the entire youth population and approximately 14% of all youths in the juvenile justice system (Angela, 2010).

The high rates of youths in the juvenile criminal system can be majorly attributed to rejection by the communities and families together with victimization in schools which make them vulnerable to commit a crime

and subsequently getting arrested (Nadal et al., 2010). LGBTs in the criminal juvenile system are twice more likely to have been abused, exposed to family conflicts, or homeless in comparison to other youths. Usually, the youths “come out” at a tender age. The families and the community may try to change youthful LGBT using different techniques which may include violating their rights. Sometimes, the youths are forced to live alone in the streets with no form of any emotional or physical support which is very important in raising a law abiding citizen.

It is widely accepted that LGBT youths are more likely to have psychological problems such as depression, substance abuse, and anxiety which makes them vulnerable to commit a crime and consequently interact with the criminal and justice system. Despite the high numbers of gay and lesbian youths in the juvenile justice system, the entire system including police officers, district attorneys, lawyers, and judges have limited expertise and experience to manage the numerous and genuine challenges facing LGBTs youths. Consequently, in an effort to rehabilitate the youths, the juvenile system is discriminatory and more harmful than it should be rehabilitative. Specifically, it denies them basic public rights through unfair criminalization that involve harsh sanctions, classifying them as sex offenders, and unlawful detentions. Recent studies show that gay and lesbian youths are more likely to be indicted in comparison to heterosexual youths.

In addition, depending on the nature of the crime, LGBT youths are required to register as sex offenders when found guilty. The sex offender tag may stick with the victim of criminal juvenile system for the better part of their adult life. This is very

detrimental because it may hinder their employability, psychological health, and societal acceptance in the future.

2.4 Segregation and isolation

Some correction facilities automatically isolate LGBTs in lonely confinement in order to protect them from other inmates. Such segregation deprives LGBTs basic necessities such as education, health, and recreation (Brown & McDuffie, 2009).

Though in some cases isolation may be the best safety measures, the practice portrays gays as sexually deviant and shows that they may be harmful to other inmates, hence, encouraging stigmatization. In addition, isolation is an example of psychological punishment which has long lasting psychological symptoms. In April 2014, arguing that a 16 years old transgender girl was too violent, the Connecticut Department of Children and Families placed the lady who was a trauma survivor in an adult correctional facility for two months. The young lady was later transferred to a juvenile correction facility for boys.

There should be more stringent legislation to ensure that such cases do not occur.

2.5 Discrimination

Gender non-conformity common among LGBT is directly correlated with victimization and harassment in the criminal justice system with gender non-conformity predicting poor treatment and procedural justice scores (Gordon & Meyer, 2007). The discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation hinders trusts between the victims and the criminal justice system, thereby preventing open communication and subsequently implantation of effective policing. Even though there are laws and policies discouraging discrimination within the justice system, there are very limited nationwide comprehensive and consistent legislations put in place to protect LGBT from discrimination. Particularly, gays and lesbians are both n danger of physical, sexual, verbal, and emotional abuse by staff and peers at correctional and rehabilitation facilities

especially in the facilities with limited training and inclusive policies on LGBT recognition. According to recent studies, about 67% of gay in correction and rehabilitation facilities have been sexually abused with 80% of the people interviewed admitting that poor safety in detention facilities was a major problem.

There are also concerns that staff at correctional facilities ignore some cases of sexual abuse because they regard gay and lesbian identities as a sexual invitation.

2.6 Reparative therapy

Generally, after coming out, families and at times the entire community try device different reparative techniques in an effort to change the sexual orientation of gays or lesbians. To date, almost all reparative techniques have been highly condemned by major health organizations such as the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Child Psychology. Unfortunately, there are many cases of reparative therapies in the justice system. There was a case where a judge colluded with the parent to hospitalize a lesbian for treatment and diagnosis.

In another case, a judge hospitalized a gay teenager to prevent him from being sexually attracted to another teenager of the same sex. Further, a 15-year-old boy was given women’s lingerie catalog in an effort to teach him appropriate sexual desires. The reparative techniques are practically worthless and detrimental, especially on teenagers. They prevent healthy mental maturity which results in severe psychological distress.

3.0 Conclusion

The LGBT community has achieved major milestones in regard to relations with the criminal justice system including legalization and limited provision of adoption rights.

However, the criminal justice system remains, in various aspects as described, harmful and discriminatory to gays and lesbians by depriving them of basic human dignity and public

rights. The present policies in the justice system overlook lesbians and gays and encourage stigmatization which leads to criminalization and unfair judgment treatment. In addition, the staff at the justice department lack cultural competency in handling LGBT.

4.0 Recommendations

Family and community rejection forces gays and lesbians to live alone and develop unlawful coping behaviors such as prostitution and drug abuse thereby increasing their risk of entering the criminal justice system (Nadal et al., 2010). LGBTs with a strong feeling of belonging show improved physical, mental, and social behaviors which is paramount to a peaceful co-existence. There should be policies put in place to help LGBT reconnect and integrate with their families once they are out of the correction facilities.

This should include the development of support systems put in place to stimulate positive development, especially among young gays and lesbians. In addition, Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act should be amended to exclude gays and lesbians who are imprisoned for certain sex-based offenses which are subjective because of their sexual orientation. The criminal justice professionals should undergo specialized training have access to a number of resources regarding gays and lesbians unique basic necessities. Importantly, the training policies and resources should ensure that criminal justice staff treats gays and lesbians with dignity, respect, and unbiasedness. Policymakers and advocates should promote equality in the criminal justice systems through increasing alternatives, specialized detention facilities.

References

1. Brown, G. R., & McDuffie, E. (2009). Health care policies addressing transgender inmates in prison systems in the United States. Journal of Correctional Health Care.
2. Gordon, A. R., & Meyer, I.

   H. (2008). Gender nonconformity as a target of prejudice, discrimination, and violence against

LGB individuals. Journal of LGBT Health Research, 3(3), 55-71.

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