The RecordExhibit 159
Cutting off hormone therapy for transgender federal prisoners, blocked by a judge and kept blocked by the Supreme Court
Ruled unlawful means: A court ruled against it. Some rulings are on appeal.
In February 2026 the Bureau of Prisons adopted a policy barring hormone therapy and 'social accommodations' such as wigs and makeup for transgender inmates. A federal judge blocked it, and on Oct. 21, 2026, the Supreme Court refused to let the administration enforce it while the case goes on.
What happened
The policy, Program Statement 5260.01, followed Trump's January 2025 executive order on 'gender ideology' and two Bureau memos that carried it out; the Bureau says it adopted the 2026 policy independently of the order. Its 43-page memo cites 'the latest scientific information', calls the World Professional Association for Transgender Health's standards unreliable, and raises inmate safety, fairness and resentment among other inmates. Three transgender inmates brought the case, Kingdom v. Trump, as a class action in federal court in Washington.
Where it stands
Ruled unlawful, at the preliminary stage. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth barred the Bureau from carrying out the policy, finding the plaintiffs likely to succeed on their claim that it 'amounts to arbitrary and capricious agency action' under the Administrative Procedure Act; the reports we opened date his order differently (June 2026 in the Epoch Times, Aug. 26, 2026 in SCOTUSblog). A divided D.C. Circuit panel refused to pause it.
On Oct. 21, 2026, the Supreme Court denied the administration's emergency application in Trump v. Kingdom (No. 26A416) in a brief unsigned order with no reasoning; Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito would have granted it. The injunction is not a ruling on the merits, and the appeal continues.
The administration's side
Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Supreme Court that the policy is needed for prison security, that the judge substituted his own policy judgment for the Bureau's, relied on evidence outside the administrative record and denied prison administrators the deference they are due, and that blocking the policy harms the government and the public.
Sources
Permanent link: https://unredactedrecord.com/e/bopcare/