On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth issued a temporary injunction against the Trump administration’s executive order mandating the transfer of transgender women from female to male prison facilities and discontinuing their access to hormone therapy. The executive order, signed by President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025, titled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” directs federal agencies to house inmates based on biological sex and cease funding for gender-affirming medical care.
Judge Lamberth’s ruling applies to all 16 transgender women currently housed in federal women’s prisons. He emphasized that the public interest in relocating these inmates to male facilities is minimal and that the balance of equities favors the plaintiffs. The judge noted that moving these individuals could expose them to a significantly elevated risk of physical and sexual violence, and that discontinuing hormone therapy could lead to severe symptoms associated with gender dysphoria.
The Department of Justice contended that the lawsuit was premature, as the inmates had not yet been transferred and had not exhausted the Bureau of Prisons’ grievance procedures. However, Judge Lamberth determined that the executive order’s directives necessitated immediate judicial intervention to prevent potential constitutional violations.
This decision marks the second instance of a federal judge blocking the administration’s efforts to implement the executive order concerning transgender inmates. Previously, a federal judge in Boston issued a temporary restraining order preventing the transfer of an individual transgender woman to a men’s facility.
The case underscores the ongoing legal challenges surrounding policies affecting transgender individuals in the federal prison system. Advocacy groups argue that such policies violate constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment and discrimination based on gender identity. The administration has not yet indicated whether it will appeal Judge Lamberth’s ruling.
The ruling is expected to set the stage for further legal battles over the administration’s approach to gender identity policies within federal agencies. With similar challenges likely to emerge, the Trump administration may seek to appeal the decision or modify its policy to withstand judicial scrutiny.
