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 U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar wrote in his 38-page order that the
state was violating the constitutional rights of Michelle-Lael
Norsworthy, who was convicted of second-degree murder in April 1987,
by not providing the operation.
Tigar wrote that Norsworthy had attempted other treatment options
but says she still experiences "excruciating pain and frustration"
due to her condition, and her current hormone replacement therapy
could threaten her liver function.
"Norsworthy has presented compelling evidence suggesting that prison
officials deliberately ignored her continuing symptoms of gender
dysphoria and the recognized standards of
care," Tigar wrote.
Gender dysphoria occurs when a person's gender at birth conflicts
with the one they identify with, the American Psychiatric
Association says.
 "She is seeking access to the medical treatment prescribed by her
treating provider and denied for administrative, rather than
medical, reasons," Tigar added.
Norsworthy, 51, was born Jeffrey Norsworthy. She is serving a
sentence of 17 years to life at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione,
California.
She began identifying as a transgender woman in the mid-1990s and
was diagnosed with the condition in January 2000.
The operation would be the first in state prison history and could
cost as much as $100,000, California Corrections Health Care
Services spokeswoman Joyce Hayhoe told the Los Angeles Times.
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Hayhoe's office was reviewing the order to "determine the next
steps," she told the newspaper.
Prescribed treatments for gender dysphoria can range from hormones,
which typically affect breast development and other secondary sex
characteristics, to facial feminization and genital surgery.
Denied treatment, people with gender dysphoria can suffer anxiety,
depression and suicidal thoughts, Tigar wrote. He ordered that the
state provide the surgery "as promptly as possible."
A federal judge in Boston issued a first-of-its-kind ruling in 2012,
ordering the state's prison system to pay for the sex change surgery
of Michelle Kosilek, who is serving a life sentence for murder.
Overturned in December, the ruling was appealed to the U.S. Supreme
Court.
(Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
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