The 62-year-old inmate had her marital status changed from male to female in 2015 while incarcerated for aggravated rape. She had filed a lawsuit against the Danish Prison Service and Hestedvester Prison in Greater Copenhagen.
Two courts ruled that she should serve her sentence in a men's unit, a decision upheld by the High Court of the East. The presence of the prisoner in a women's prison "would pose a significant security risk to female prisoners", the court said. The court also ruled that the placement of the inmate in a male unit did not violate her rights, as it was not based on non-recognition of legal gender, but on security assessment.