News Release
Contact:
Christopher Herrera, Legal Aid Society–Employment Law Center
415.593.0071 |
Prison Guard Sues After Years of Harassment, Abuse
Federal Civil Rights Suit Alleges Neglect, Retaliation on Part of Prison Officials
(SAN FRANCISCO, CA, October 5, 2011)&8212;A female corrections officer is suing the Bureau of Prisons claiming the Bureau failed to stop years of harassment including physical abuse and death threats from a fellow corrections officer. The lawsuit, Jane Doe v. Eric Holder, Attorney General of the United States, was filed late Tuesday, October 4, 2011, in Northern District of California today on behalf of a correctional officer assigned to the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, CA (FCI Dublin). The suit alleges discrimination based on sex, sexual harassment and retaliation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The plaintiff is represented by the Legal Aid Society–Employment Law Center and the law firm of Stewart & Musell LLP.
In the suit, the plaintiff charges that she submitted multiple oral and written complaints to her supervisors over several years about abuse at the hands of a fellow officer. The plaintiff even provided prison officials with a restraining order against the aggressor. However, the only action taken by prison officials was to protect the abusive officer and retaliate against the plaintiff.
In 2007 the plaintiff&8212;who has chosen to remain anonymous for fear of further reprisals&8212;sought to end a relationship of several months with a fellow correctional officer at FCI Dublin. According to the lawsuit, this triggered a pattern of abuse from the male officer including striking the plaintiff in the face, threatening to kill the plaintiff with a prison-issued weapon, slamming her against a wall, locking her in a cell and emailing images of beaten and bloody women to the plaintiff through the prison email system.
“The abuse this woman had to suffer would amount to multiple felonies in any other arena,” said attorney for the plaintiff Denise Hulett, Director of Litigation for the Legal Aid Society–Employment Law Center. “However, because these actions occurred in federal prison by a federal corrections officer, the only outcome was reprisals and retaliation.”
The suit goes on to claim that despite repeated complaints from the plaintiff, the prison warden and the Bureau of Prisons took no action to protect the plaintiff. Instead, Jane Doe was required to work in close quarters with her abuser, often without supervision and in some cases in a locked facility where the abuser held the keys. In addition, the suit alleges the prison failed to transfer her to another position when she sought medical treatment for post-traumatic stress syndrome, brought baseless internal investigations against her and denied her a scheduled pay increase.
“This case is evidence of an institutional culture that is more than dysfunctional&8212;it is dangerous,” said attorney for the plaintiff Wendy Musell. “Not only did the authorities do nothing to protect this woman, they repeatedly and knowingly put her life in danger by forcing her to work in close quarters with an armed man who had previously threatened to kill her.”
The suit seeks a safe working environment for the plaintiff as well as broad policy changes to ensure the prompt investigation and resolution of similar complaints in order to prevent and correct harassment and retaliation in the future. The suit also asks for lost wages and benefits as well as medical and other expenses denied or lost due to actions or negligence of the defendants.
About Stewart & Musell LLP | www.stewartandmusell.com
Stewart & Musell is a bicoastal law practice representing employees throughout California, New York and New Jersey in workplace discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful and retaliatory discharge cases. Stewart & Musell also negotiate employment contracts as well as severance agreements for clients.