The U.S. Justice Department says it has notified Maine Governor Janet Mills that it has started an investigation into the state’s practice of housing transgender inmates in women’s prisons.
The DOJ says it’ll investigate accusations that Maine has allowed a transgender inmate to remain housed with women at the Maine Correctional Women’s Center in Windham despite complaints that the transgender inmate has assaulted or harassed several female inmates.
Several women at the Windham prison have reported being harassed or assaulted by Andrea Balcer, who is a transgender woman convicted in a double murder case.
The Justice Department did not mention Balcer by name and says it has not reached any conclusion in the case.
A search of the Maine Department of Corrections database
shows Balcer is 6-foot-1 and 310 pounds. She’s identified as Andrew Balcer, who is known by several aliases, including Andrea Balcer.
(Andrea Balcer – Maine Department of Corrections)
Balcer is now 27 years old. She was 17 when she was charged in 2016 with killing her parents and a family dog in Winthrop. She stared going by Andrea shortly before her trial began.
The Justice Department is launching a similar in investigation in California and says it has notified Governor Gavin Newsom.
“Keeping men out of women’s prisons is not only common sense — it’s a matter of safety and constitutional rights,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. “The Trump administration will not stand by if governors are facilitating the abuse of biological women under the guise of inclusion.”