CITY Magistrate Dylon Bess, on Thursday dismissed a physical assault matter in which transgender woman, Petranella Trotman, known as Petronella, was the victim.

Although the transgender woman was present for the court hearing, she along with several of her friends were barred from entering the courtroom as the verdict was being handed down by the Magistrate. The Magistrate cleared his courtroom from the public and made his decision in the absence of the victim who was standing outside the door. The charge was dismissed against Jamal Johnson.
Petronella was allegedly physically assaulted by Johnson last year. The matter was reported at the Brickdam Police Station and the perpetrator was charged with assault.
The case was heard before Bess on January 31, 2017, but according to Petronella, she was admonished for attending court dressed in female attire, consistent with her gender identity. The transgender woman was continuously barred from entering the courtroom by the Magistrate due to being dressed in female clothing.
She expressed her disappointment in the Magistrate’s decision to dismiss the matter without hearing her side of the story. The victim explained that she has no intentions of appealing the matter.
Last week, the Court of Appeal upheld a 2013 ruling by Former Chief Justice, Ian Chang, which stated that cross dressing is not a crime, once not done for improper purposes. In 2010, a group of Transgender men had asked that the Supreme Court strike down laws that left them open to arrest following a police crackdown the previous year on male cross dressers.
However, while Chang’s ruling allowed men to dress in women’s clothing, it did not state what constituted improper use, which led to concerns about interpretation.
Last week, Justice Carl Singh reasoned that improper use would entail a man dressing as a woman, and using this female image to solicit service from a taxi driver, after which he robs the driver.