Trans influencer Nikita Dragun was held in and released from a men’s jail in Miami, her representative says
Dragun was charged with felony assault of a police officer on Monday.
Influencer Nikita Dragun was released from jail in Miami on Wednesday, according to her representative and Miami-Dade County criminal justice records. Dragun, 26, was arrested Monday at a hotel and charged with felony assault of a police officer.
Dragun, who is transgender, is well-known online for content about her transition, beauty and style. She has 27 million followers across YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.
While in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami, Dragun’s representative said she was placed in a men’s unit.
“The situation with Nikita, who is legally female, being placed in a men’s unit of a Florida jail is extremely disturbing and dangerous,” Jack Ketsoyan of Full Scope Public Relations said in a statement.
“This decision made by the Miami-Dade County Corrections Department directly violates their protocol, which mandates that transgender inmates are classified and housed based on safety needs and gender identity,” Ketsoyan said. “Nikita has been released and is now safe. Thank you for respecting her privacy during this time.”
Dragun was released on recognizance, Miami-Dade County’s records said, meaning she did not have to post bail. Her arraignment hearing in Miami is scheduled for Dec. 7.
The Miami-Dade Police Department previously provided NBC News with an arrest affidavit from Monday that said Dragun swung an open water bottle toward police officers and a hotel security guard, “causing the water to hit and spill on” the guard and an officer. Dragun was also charged with misdemeanor battery and misdemeanor disorderly conduct, the affidavit said, after she threw water on a separate hotel staffer and walked around the hotel’s pool area “unclothed.”
A 2020 NBC News investigation found that most transgender individuals are jailed according to the sex they were assigned at birth, putting them at risk of rape, sexual assault and abuse.
In the affidavit, the department said Dragun “appears as a female but would like to be recognized as a male.” The affidavit lists Dragun as male and uses the pronouns “he” and “him” in the report. In Dragun’s inmate profile from the correction center, where she was held, she is also listed as male. When referring to herself online, Dragun has used “she” and “her” pronouns since beginning her transition in 2015.
-nbc news
