He has admitted that as a teenager he worked as a homosexual prostitute and was convicted of robbing a customer so violently that despite his youth the judge gave him a 2-year prison sentence. He served eight months of the sentence when he was aged 18 <ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/23/chelsea-manning-transgender-prison-paris-lees|title='I hope Chelsea Manning gets the help she needs': Paris Lees, transgender former prisoner, on life inside|first=Paris|last=Lees|work=The Guardian|date=23 August 2013|accessdate=27 October 2013}}</ref> | He has admitted that as a teenager he worked as a homosexual prostitute and was convicted of robbing a customer so violently that despite his youth the judge gave him a 2-year prison sentence. He served eight months of the sentence when he was aged 18 <ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/23/chelsea-manning-transgender-prison-paris-lees|title='I hope Chelsea Manning gets the help she needs': Paris Lees, transgender former prisoner, on life inside|first=Paris|last=Lees|work=The Guardian|date=23 August 2013|accessdate=27 October 2013}}</ref> |