Lawsuit Claims Word "Inmate" Is Slander, Implies Homosexual Sex

There are plenty of problems with the United States penal system, and according to Marie Domond, the use of the word “inmate” is the most concerning. Domond’s brother Gerard is currently incarcerated, and she’s suing the state for using a label that “implies that our brother is locked up for the purpose of mating with other men.”

The New York Post reports that Domond has filed a lawsuit in Brooklyn federal court demanding that officials stop using the term inmate, and asking for $50 million to cover the family’s “mental anguish.” Presumably some of their anguish comes from the fact that Gerard was convicted of shooting a man in the head in 1987 and is serving 25 years to life. However, the family is also extremely troubled by the state constantly insisting that Gerard is enjoying homosexual relationships in the joint.

Marie, who’s acting as her own lawyer, explains:

“The suggestive nature of the word is disgraceful. This cruel psychological programming has weighed heavily on our emotional and psychological well-being. It’s something that’s bothered me for a long time … I couldn’t understand why no one recognized that somebody being labeled an inmate, why they wouldn’t recognize that. To me it just sounded very wrong.”

Aside from the fact that it’s not an insult to suggest someone enjoys fornicating with people of the same sex, it’s possible no one realized how wrong the word is because it doesn’t mean that. Per Merriam-Webster:

Any of a group occupying a single place of residence; especially : a person confined (as in a prison or hospital)

Hospital stays just got a lot sexier.

“Inmate”? That’s Offensive [N.Y. Post via Gothamist]
Inmate [Merriam-Webster]