EXCLUSIVE: Trans-Identified Male Pedophile Placed in Women’s Prison to Serve Sexual Abuse Sentence

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A sex offender who claims to identify as transgender was placed in a women’s prison in Illinois, despite being listed as a “male” in the state’s Department of Corrections’ records. James “Jamie” Boots, who is serving an 11-year sentence for sexually abusing a child under the age of 13, is currently detained at Logan Correctional Center for women.

Records reviewed by Reduxx show that Boots had already begun to identify as a “woman” when he sexually abused the child. A statement from Kane County State’s Attorney Joe McMahon, published in July of 2020, referred to Boots with feminine pronouns.

McMahon noted that in January of that year, Boots had been found guilty of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, a Class X felony, and said: “Jamie Boots caused great harm to this victim, and yet when given the opportunity to accept responsibility, she engaged in victim blaming and minimized her behavior. I am pleased that justice has been served in this case and hope this prison sentence is a big step toward healing for this victim.”

Boots’ crimes began in 2009, when he began sexually abusing his 10-year-old stepdaughter at their home in Elgin, Illinois. According to court records, Boots plied the girl with marijuana and alcohol before sexually abusing her in her bedroom. The victim testified that while Boots was living with her mother and siblings, she referred to him as “Mommy Jamie.”

The incident came to light in 2017 after Detective Andrew Houghton of the Elgin Police Department was contacted by the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). The DCFS became involved after Boots had made statements referring to the sexual abuse to medical staff in a hospital and to a social worker. Houghton then conducted an interview with Boots, which he recorded.

During court proceedings, the defense counsel for Boots argued that he had disclosed the sexual abuse on his own because he “wanted to get help,” and that he was “very emotional and loved [his] children.” However, Boots’ court testimony contradicted the victim and downplayed the abuse. He claimed he had moved to perform cunnilingus on the child, but had stopped in response to her discomfort with the situation. The victim refuted this, and told police Boots had not stopped during the sexual assault.

Only after further questioning did Boots admit to the sexual assault.

The court heard that other incidents of sexual assault occurred between April 2009 and October 2010, according to news reports of the 2020 trial.

His legal representation asked for leniency on the basis of Boots’ admission despite it having been inaccurate, and because he had “other children to take care of.” Boots also attempted to argue that his victim would suffer if he were punished too harshly, claiming she would “regret” disclosing the sexual abuse, and that giving him a sentence greater than the minimum would “make things worse” for the child.

Boots claimed that he had decided to confess in order to help the victim, who was suffering from mental health issues related to the sexual assaults and was seeing a medical professional. He stated, during a pre-sentence investigation report (PSI) that he was also a victim of childhood sexual abuse.

But the court disagreed with the attempt at mitigation on the basis that “the victim also came to court and had to testify in open court about what happened to her to people she doesn’t know… That’s not exactly looking out for the victim.”

Boots was ultimately sentenced to 11 years in prison for the sexual abuse of his stepdaughter.

In 2022, Boots appealed his sentence, arguing that he had received ineffective assistance of counsel and that his sentence was “excessive,” as the minimum sentence for the crime he had been convicted of was 6 years. The Appellate Court of Illinois struck down the appeal, stating in their decision: “In imposing a sentence that was five years over the minimum, the trial court considered relevant factors in aggravation. Specifically, the trial court considered that the offense caused the victim serious psychological harm, the defendant was [the girl’s] stepparent and thus in a position of authority and trust, and the sentence was necessary to deter others.”

There are currently multiple violent and sexually depraved men being held at the Logan Correctional Center for women in Illinois, which has boasted of being a trans “sanctuary” state. The policy allowing men to be housed in a women’s prison came into effect as a result of litigation backed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Illinois. Male convicted killer Andre Patterson sued the Department of Corrections and in 2019 was transferred to Logan from a men’s facility. Just two months after being detained at the women’s prison, Patterson was accused by multiple women of sexual assault and rape.

One victim filed an official Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) report against Patterson, and then subsequently, a lawsuit alleging that “IDOC employees covered up the sexual assault… and tried to falsely classify it as consensual, to keep it from being considered a PREA violation.”

Despite the allegations of sexually predatory behavior committed by Patterson, DOC officials have been unsuccessful in their attempts to transfer the killer back to a men’s prison. Since 2019, court records depict an ongoing exchange between Patterson’s attorneys and prison officials regarding his placement in a women’s prison.

In the records, Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) officials argued for Patterson’s removal from the female estate. In recordings of the court proceedings, Patterson’s attorneys, while referring to him with feminine pronouns, reveal that the attempted move was prevented due to a court-ordered stay on the basis that he wanted to undergo “gender-affirming” genital surgery – despite not yet having done so, and having admitted to terminating his use of feminizing hormone supplements.

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Originally written for and published by Reduxx, your source for pro-woman and pro-child safeguarding news.