Chief Constable Jo Farrell has mandated that anyone charged with grave sexual offenses and identifying as transgender women would be officially documented as men.
The largest force in the UK outside of London is called Police Scotland.
The apparent change in stance follows the prior statement made by cops north of the border that suspects were handled “as they present” and that gender identification documentation was not needed unless it was “pertinent” to the crime.
The force went further and said that a rapist who “self-identifies as a woman would be expected to be recorded as such” in answer to a Freedom of Information request in 2021.
The controversy comes after a number of high-profile incidents in the past few years, such as Adam Graham, who started posing as Isla Bryson while awaiting trial for two rape charges.
In February 2023, Bryson was found guilty of rape and sentenced to eight years in prison.
Bryson was first detained in segregation in Cornton Vale Women’s Prison, which is located close to Stirling, while she awaited punishment, per Scottish Prison Service (SPS) guidelines at the time.
After a public uproar, Bryson was promptly transferred to the male estate, and an immediate case assessment later determined that the prisoner’s management did not pose a risk of damage to women.
