David Peter Reimer (born
Bruce Peter Reimer; 22 August 1965 – 4 May 2004) was a Canadian man born male but
reassigned as a girl and raised female following medical advice and intervention after his
penis was severely injured during a botched
circumcision in infancy.
[2]
The psychologist
John Money oversaw the case and reported the reassignment as successful and as evidence that
gender identity is primarily learned. The academic
sexologist Milton Diamond later reported that Reimer's realization he was not a girl crystallized between the ages of 9 and 11 years
[3] and he transitioned to living as a male at age 15. Well known in medical circles for years anonymously as the "John/Joan" case, Reimer later went public with his story to help discourage similar medical practices. He died by
suicide after suffering years of
severe depression, financial instability, and a troubled marriage.
[4]