Three police officers arrested a woman in front of her children and locked her up for seven hours after she referred to a transgender woman as a man on Twitter.

Kate Scottow, of Hitchin, Hertfordshire, was arrested by three officers at her home, and had her photograph, DNA and fingerprints taken after she was reported by a transgender activist for ‘deadnaming’.

Scottow says that officers took her mobile phone and laptop, and served her with a court order preventing from her referring to her accuser, Stephanie Hayden, as a man.

Kate Scottow was locked up for seven hours

Scottow was accused of a ‘campaign of targeted harassment’ and of using two Twitter accounts in two different names to harass Hayden.




Writing on Mumsnet, she said, ‘I was arrested in my home by three officers, with my autistic ten-year-old daughter and breastfed 20-month-old son present.

‘I was then detained for seven hours in a cell with no sanitary products (which I said I needed) before being interviewed then later released under investigation.

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‘I was arrested for harassment and malicious communications because I called someone out and misgendered them on Twitter.’

Hertfordshire Police said: ‘We take all reports of malicious communication seriously.’

Scottow referred to Stephanie Hayden as a man

Court papers say that Scottow tweeted ‘defamatory’ posts about Hayden in a ‘toxic’ debate over gender.

Scottow also labelled her ‘racist, xenophobic and a crook’.