Female Prisoners Suffer Under Abusive Guards

The instances of male prison guards sexually abusing female prisoners is reaching such high proportions that one human rights group is labeling it an "explosive national problem." The nongovernemental organization Human Right's Watch Women's Project (HRWWP) is asking the U.S. government and state correctional facilities to better protect female prisoners from continual incidents of rape, inappropriate body searches and verbal harassment. Based on a two-year study of prisoners, guards, governmental agencies and civil rights groups, HRWWP concluded that every state needs to clearly define and prohibit all forms of sexual misconduct -- from voyeurism to sexual intercourse -- in their prisons."The situation for women in U.S. state prisons is intolerable," said Dorothy Q. Thomas, director of HRWWP and author of the report, "All Too Familiar, Sexual Abuse of Women in U.S. State Prisons." "Male officers are sexually abusing female prisoners while the state and federal governments largely look the other way. It doesn't take a lot of resources to remedy this problem, just the political will to stop it," she said. HRWWP is calling on Congress, the U.S. Department of Justice, the executive branch and all state governments to expressly prohibit sexual relations between guards and inmates. The lack of an explicit, enforced system to conduct thorough investigations and track complaints is a hindrance to making progress in these abuses, claims the group. "Our sense is that our findings are just the tip of the iceberg," said Regan Ralph, Washington director of HRWWP. She said the group does not have statistical numbers on incidents of sexual abuse because "there is no efficient tracking system in place so it's difficult to tell." She added that there are a number of disincentives to reporting these violations, such as intimidation by corrections officials. In some cases, it's not a crime for prisoners and guards to have sex. In fact, 23 states do not consider consensual sex between corrections staff and inmates criminal, she added.Although the groups' conclusions center on investigations of women's correctional facilities in California, Georgia, New York and the District of Columbia, the implications of the organization's findings extend beyond specific prisons. Federal prisons, although not specified in the report, also are coming under public scrutiny. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP), which oversees federal incarceration facilities, is confident about the work of its employees despite the controversy stirred by HRWWP. "Overall, our staff is doing an outstanding, professional job," said Dan Dunne, assistant chief of public information at BOP. "These isolated incidents [in the report] are not reflective of the quality of service overall. Our staff is doing a very professional job housing inmates convicted of very serious violations."