District of Columbia
D.C. Jail agrees to end anti-trans housing policies
Officials settle lawsuit filed by former inmate placed in men’s unit
The D.C. Department of Corrections on March 23 agreed to change its housing policies for transgender people at the D.C. Jail as part of a settlement of a lawsuit filed by the ACLU of D.C. and the D.C. Public Defender Service on behalf of a transgender woman who last year was forced against her will to live in the men’s section of the jail.
The class action lawsuit charged that D.C. Jail and Department of Corrections officials violated transgender woman Sunday Hinton’s constitutional rights of equal protection and violated the D.C. Human Rights Act’s ban on gender identity discrimination by placing her in the men’s housing facility for more than two weeks in May 2021.
“Under the settlement, DOC will implement new safeguards to ensure that transgender people will be housed in accordance with their gender identity upon intake and will limit the time they may be held in isolating ‘protective custody’ status absent the person’s request or specific safety concerns,” according to a statement released by the ACLU.
“Additionally, DOC will end its practice of shackling all ‘protective custody’ residents, including transgender people, while they are being transferred or moved within the jail,” the ACLU statement says. It says the DOC also agreed to report to the Public Defender Service for four months about the status of the implementation of its new policies.
“No one should face what I had to face in the D.C. Jail,” Hinton said in the ACLU statement. “DOC put my safety and mental health at risk, and I’m glad that other trans people at the Jail will be treated with more dignity,” she said.
Court records show that Hinton spent about four weeks at the D.C. Jail in the spring of 2021 after a judge ordered her to be detained while awaiting trial based on a charge of unarmed burglary with intent to steal $20. The charge has since been dismissed.
The settlement of Hinton’s lawsuit comes nine months after the DOC in June 2021 transferred Hinton from the men’s to the women’s housing unit and dropped its policy of automatically placing transgender inmates in the housing section of the jail in accordance with their biological sex or “anatomy.” Those changes came one month after the lawsuit was filed.
But the ACLU announced at the time that it would keep the lawsuit going on Hinton’s behalf because DOC and Jail officials continued to require transgender people entering the jail as new inmates to be placed in an isolation unit in “protective custody” during their intake period, which could take two weeks or longer.
The ACLU noted that DOC officials also continued to subject all inmates in the isolation unit, including trans inmates, to be placed in shackles while they moved them from one place to another within the Jail.
“Both the D.C. Jail’s practice of assigning transgender people to housing based on anatomy rather than gender identity and its decision to place trans residents in unnecessary full-body shackles in protective custody were discriminatory and profoundly harmful,” said Scott Michelman, Legal Director of the ACLU of D.C. “It shouldn’t take a lawsuit to gain recognition of transgender peoples’ basic humanity and dignity, but we’re pleased the Department of Corrections has agreed to change its unlawful polices,” he said.
“Sunday Hinton’s courageous fight against discrimination has led to important changes not only for transgender individuals but for all protective custody jail residents, who until now were subjected to the degrading and unjustified practice of full-body shackling,” said Rachel Cicurel, a staff attorney with the Public Defender Service. “Ms. Hinton’s case has exposed several kinds of inhumane treatment by DOC,” she said.
Spokespersons for the Department of Corrections and and the office of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. A spokesperson for the Office of the D.C. The Attorney General, which represented the DOC in its defense against the lawsuit, said the AG’s office would have no comment on the matter of the lawsuit settlement.
The seven-page settlement agreement, which was filed in D.C. Superior Court on March 23, states, among other things, that, “Defendant denies all allegations of wrongdoing and any liability to plaintiff.”
It adds, “This Settlement does not and shall not be deemed to constitute an admission by Defendant as to the validity or accuracy of any of the allegations, assertions, or claims made by Plaintiff.”
District of Columbia
Gay D.C. police lieutenant arrested on child porn charges
Matthew Mahl once served as head of LGBT Liaison Unit
D.C. police announced on April 14 that they have placed one of their lieutenants, Matthew Mahl, on administrative leave and revoked his police powers after receiving information that he was arrested in Maryland one day earlier.
Although the initial D.C. police announcement doesn’t disclose the reason for the arrest it refers to a statement by the Harford County, Md. Sheriff’s Office that discloses Mahl has been charged with sexual solicitation of a minor and child porn solicitation.
“On Tuesday, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office contacted MPD’s Internal Affairs Division shortly after arresting Lieutenant Matthew Mahl,” the D.C. police statement says.
“The allegations in this case are extremely disturbing, and in direct contrast to the values of the Metropolitan Police Department,” the statement continues. “MPD’s Internal Affairs Division will investigate violations of MPD policy once the criminal investigation concludes,” it says.
“MPD is not involved in the criminal investigation and was not aware of the investigation until yesterday,” the statement adds.
Mahl served as acting supervisor of the MPD’s then Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit in 2013 when he held the rank of sergeant. D.C. police officials placed him on administrative leave and suspended his police powers that same year while investigating an undisclosed allegation.
A source familiar with the investigation said Mahl was cleared of any wrongdoing a short time later and resumed his police duties. Around the time he was promoted to lieutenant several years later Mahl took on the role as chairman of the D.C. Police Union, becoming the first known openly gay officer to hold that position.
NBC 4 reports that Mahl, 47, has served on the police force for 23 years and most recently was assigned to the department’s Special Operations Division.
Records related to Mahl’s arrest filed in Harford County District Court, show Sheriff’s Department investigators state in charging documents that he allegedly committed the offenses of Sexual Solicitation of a Minor and Child Porn Solicitation on Monday, April 13, one day before he was arrested on April 14.
The court records show he was held without bond during his first appearance in court on April 14. A decision on whether he would be released while awaiting trial or continue to be held without bond was scheduled to be determined during an April 15 bond hearing. The outcome of that hearing could not be immediately determined.
District of Columbia
D.C. bar, LGBTQ+ Community Center to mark Lesbian Visibility Week
‘Ahead of the Curve’ documentary screening, ‘Queeroke’ among events
2026 Lesbian Visibility Week North America will take place from April 20-26.
This year marks the third annual Lesbian Visibility Week, run by the Curve Foundation. A host of events take place from April 20-26.
This year’s theme is Health and Wellness. For the Curve Foundation, the term “lesbian” serves as an umbrella term for a host of identities, including lesbians, bisexual and transgender women, and anyone else connected to the lesbian community.
The week kicks off with a flag-raising ceremony on April 19. It will take place in New York, but will be livestreamed for the public.
“Queeroke” is one of the events being held around the country. It will take place at various participating bars on April 23.
As You Are, an LGBTQ bar in Capitol Hill, is one of eight locations across the U.S. participating. Their event is free and 21+.
On April 24, the D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center will hold a screening of “Ahead of the Curve,” a documentary about the founder of Curve, Franco Stevens. The event is free with an RSVP.
April 25, is Queer Women in Sports Day. And on April 26, several monuments in New York will be illuminated.
Virtual events ranging from health to sports will be made available to the public. Details will be released closer to the start of Lesbian Visibility Week. Featured events can be found on the official website.
Some ways for individuals to get involved are to use #LVW26 and tag the official Lesbian Visibility Week account on social media posts. People are encouraged to display their lesbian flags, and businesses can hand out pins and decorate. They can also reach out to local lawmakers to encourage them to issue an official Lesbian Visibility Week.
District of Columbia
Whitman-Walker Health to present ‘Pro Bono Excellence’ award to law firm
Health center set to celebrate 40th anniversary of legal services program
Whitman-Walker Health, the D.C.-based community healthcare center that specializes in HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ-related health services, announced it will present its annual Dale Edwin Sanders Award for Pro Bono Excellence to the international law firm McDermott Will & Schulte at a May 6 ceremony.
“This year’s award is especially significant as it coincides with the 40th anniversary of Whitman-Walker Health’s Legal Services Program, marking it as the nation’s longest running medical-legal partnership,” a statement released by Whitman-Walker says.
“As a national leader in public health, Whitman-Walker celebrates our partnership with McDermott to strengthen the health center and to enable Whitman-Walker to reach more medical and legal clients,” the statement adds.
“McDermott’s firm-wide commitment to Whitman-Walker’s medical-legal partnership demonstrates a shared vision to serve those most in need,” Amy Nelson, Whitman-Walker’s director of Legal Services, says in the statement. “Our work protects individuals and families who face discrimination and hostility as they navigate increasingly complex administrative systems,” Nelson said.
“Pro bono legal services – like that of McDermott Will & Schulte – find solutions for people who have no place else to turn in the face of financial and health threats,” she added.
“Our partnership with Whitman-Walker Health is a treasured commitment to serving our neighbors and communities,” Steven Schnelle, one of the law firm’s partners said in the statement. “We are deeply moved by Whitman-Walker’s unwavering dedication to inclusion, respect, and equitable access to health care and social services,” he said.
The statement notes that the award for Pro Bono Excellence honors the legacy of the late gay attorney Dale Edwin Sanders. It says Sanders’s pro bono legal work for Whitman-Walker clients “shaped HIV/AIDS law for more than four decades by securing key victories on behalf of individuals whose employment and patient rights were violated.”
It says the Whitman-Walker Legal Services program began during the early years of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s at a time when people with AIDS faced widespread discrimination and often needed legal assistance. According to the statement, the program evolved over the years and expanded to advocate for transgender people and immigrants.
Whitman-Walker spokesperson Lisa Amore said the presentation of the Dale Edwin Sanders Pro Bono Excellency Award will be held at the May 6 fundraising benefit for Whitman-Walker’s Legal Services Program. She said the event will take place at the offices of the DC law firm Baker McKenzie and ticket availability can be accessed here: https://www.whitman-walker.org/gtem-2026/
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