First U.S. inmate to get state-funded sex reassignment moves to California prison for women

Officials say the first U.S. inmate to receive state-funded sex-reassignment surgery has been moved to a women’s prison.

California corrections department spokeswoman Terry Thornton said 57-year-old Shiloh Heavenly Quine was admitted to the Central California Women’s Facility on Wednesday.

The prison, northwest of Fresno, holds about 2,900 women.

Quine previously was at a men’s prison, although she has been living as a woman since 2009.

The convicted killer, who is serving a life prison sentence, underwent the surgery in December after a court settlement.

Her case led California to become the first state to set standards for transgender inmates to apply to receive the surgery. It also led to a federal magistrate’s order to provide transgender female inmates housed in men’s facilities with items such as nightgowns, scarves and necklaces.