Denver: A bill being considered by the Colorado state House Judiciary Committee would make it easier for convicted felons seeking gender-affirming treatment to have their names legally changed.
Currently, people who have been convicted of a felony can only change their name for a “good cause.” Gender-affirming care would be included as a justification for a good cause in the bill, HB 1071. The final decision in each case would still be up to the judge.
Tiara Kelley, a transgender woman living in Colorado, said, “We realized that this is something that has to happen, not just for me, but there are hundreds and hundreds of other trans people in the same situation.” She revealed that she was convicted of a felony while living in Florida.
“My felony stemmed from being a sex worker and having three separate charges for that,” she said. “In Florida, when you have three of the same charge, whether they’re misdemeanors or not, they become a felony charge.”
Kelley stated that her conviction for a felony changed her entire life. As she began her gender-affirming treatment, her legal name was always a reminder of her past. She said she no longer identifies with the name and cringes when she hears it.
“Every single time, and it’s awful,” she said. “I hate it. I hate it so much. I don’t know who that person is. That name is foreign to me, and when I hear it, something happens in my gut. It almost feels like a punch in the face.”
The bill will be presented to the state House Judiciary Committee on January 30. If the legislation is ultimately passed, it will be known as Tiara’s Law. State Representative Lorena Garcia, a Democrat representing District 35, is the bill’s sponsor. She discussed her decision to support it with 9NEWS.
HB 1071: What is it?
Garcia: HB 1071 clarifies in our state laws that if you have a felony and are also transgender, you can change your name as long as the judge allows it. One of the issues is the ambiguity in our state statutes. Anyone who picks up a state statute book will agree, I’m sure. We want to include gender-affirming as a good cause in this case because there is a section of the law that states “good cause.” The important thing about this bill is that it doesn’t change anything else. It’s simply making a law that’s already in effect accessible to everyone.
Why do you think it’s important to advance this bill?
Garcia: Our legal system currently has a disproportionately high representation of trans individuals. They are much more likely to be convicted of felonies. Considering our trans community represents about 4% of Coloradans, I estimate that 17% of them are incarcerated.
Given that so many of our community members who identify as trans go through our criminal justice system, it’s possible that when they were in the process they hadn’t transitioned, hadn’t decided to change their names, or hadn’t decided if they wanted to do so legally. Because of our disproportionality, this is detrimental to their mental health and their sense of self, and they can’t make this important change for themselves in the future.
Would their felony conviction become attached to the name they change to if this bill were to pass and a trans person who had been convicted of a felony was able to have their name changed?
Garcia: Absolutely. Their criminal history is tied to their Social Security number, regardless of whether their name is changed.
You also have to go through background checks and fingerprinting because it’s still up to the judge to decide whether or not you should have a name change. Moreover, even if you are granted a name change, your record also bears your dead name. So, it’s not like you disappear and become someone else. You still have your past. The process is difficult. The process is not straightforward.
What do you say to those who might be against this bill?
Garcia: We’re not changing anything in the law. We’re not granting any new rights. We’re clarifying what already exists and asking everyone in this state to uphold their legal rights. We must make it accessible to everyone.
