By Dick LaFontaine
A known murderer has stated his wish to be identified as a baby in jail, by wearing diapers and eating baby food.
Just a month before his scheduled release from a Scottish prison, Daniel Eastwood murdered his cellmate by shoelace strangulation and was subsequently sentenced to life in prison in 2004.
Daniel ‘Sophie’ Eastwood is currently in the process of transitioning to be an infant.
In 2018, fourteen years later, Daniel identified as female and insisted on being referred to as “Sophie Eastwood.” The prison staff considered and complied with Daniel’s request.
Eastwood was transferred to a woman’s prison.
Now the 36-year-old Eastwood says he is a baby and wants to be treated like one. He also demanded that the prison staff puree his food and give him diapers.
Eastwood instructed the Polmont jail warden that he wants to identify himself as a baby, wear diapers, and must have his food prepared as porridge.
Eastwood has also demanded that corrections officers hold his hand when escorting her out of her cell.
Prison officials are treating Eastwood’s demands seriously, and considering what protocols should be established in dealing with the prisoner.
Eastwood has already been provided with a doll.
A source said: “This prisoner has been difficult and manipulative over the years, which is why he is still behind bars after 17 years. He decided to do a male-to-female ‘trans’, which is becoming more common in prisons these days. But this is obviously something else entirely, and the Scottish Prison Service has no protocol for dealing with prisoners who decide to be babies.”
The source added: “Eastwood is a complex and intelligent person, but he is quite demanding on the prison’s resources and enjoys being the center of attention. It’s hard to tell if he really feels a natural inclination to be treated like a baby or if it’s just kind of attention-seeking.”
Modern prisons are attuned to human rights and the legal implications, so due attention is being paid to it.
But Dr. Edwin Maxwell told Frank Report that may not be enough.
Every person has “the right to self identity,” Dr. Maxwell explained.
“Believe the person,” Dr. Maxwell said. “If Sophie sees herself as an infant, this is not something we have the right to dispute. We must support her and show our compassion and understanding. To do otherwise is to deny all of us our humanity.
“This goes beyond gender. It goes beyond race. It goes beyond age. A future humanity will invent a science capable of allowing people to change their gender, age, race, even species. Imagine a world where we each can be what we truly are. For now, let us pay homage to Sophie and other brave pioneers in the newly forged world of true human rights.”
These accolades come handy for Eastwood.
For it has been a tough road.
In 2004, when just a teenager, Daniel was jailed for reckless driving. A month before he was scheduled to be released, he strangled his cellmate with his shoelaces. The judge gave him a life sentence.
In 2018, Daniel figured out that his troubles occurred because he was actually a woman in a male body, and that the authorities were “sexist oppressors.”
He identified as a woman and was transferred to a women’s prison.
He told the Daily Record:
In January 2020, I met all the standard criteria to pass to less secure conditions, except being biologically female.
The prison service wanted me to have a psychological assessment as I hadn’t had one since starting to live as female.
After that, I was told by a manager that I would have passed the assessment had I still been living as a man.
I felt this was sexist and transphobic. The SPS was implying that as a man I didn’t represent a risk to the public but as a woman I did. I don’t think there’s any evidence to support that.
Dr. Maxwell told Frank Report, “It seems easy enough to accommodate this child’s needs. Making food into puree is not a hard thing. Providing diapers is not costly. Holding his hand, even giving the baby a hug, would do nothing to diminish prison security, and might help guards bond with this child. Prisons do not have to be hard and sterile. Who knows, maybe one of the guards might consider adopting Sophie when she is released.”
