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OPINIONS
Editorial: Stronger steps needed to protect female inmates
Recent allegations that a nonviolent female inmate was sexually assulted at Anthony Correctional Center in Greenbrier County suggest that more steps should be taken to protect female inmates.
Purchase this photoWest Virginia corrections officials and attorneys representing clients who have sued the state agree that progress has been made to protect female inmates from sexual misconduct by corrections officers.
But recent allegations strongly suggest that those in charge of the state's prison and jail system should do more.
Calling attention to the issue last week was a proposed $100,000 settlement of a U.S. District Court case in which a nonviolent offender claimed she was sexually assaulted by an associate warden while she was assigned to be part of the work force at Anthony Correctional Center in Greenbrier County.
That's one case. But 20 other lawsuits filed in Kanawha Circuit Court also allege that women were victims of sexual misconduct while they were incarcerated, with the allegations ranging from sexual harassment and groping to sexual assault, also known as rape. The misconduct alleged in the suits occurred from summer 2005 through January 2009. A defendant named in eight of the lawsuits pleaded guilty last year in Greenbrier Circuit Court to sexual intercourse or intrusion with an inmate at Anthony.
Deputy Cabinet Secretary Joe Thornton acknowledged to The Herald-Dispatch that sexual misconduct has been documented before, and that authorities are aware of the overall issue. He said, and attorneys representing the clients in the lawsuits against the state agree, that recent steps have reduced risks for female inmates. Among the changes he cited were placement of "top-notch" wardens, increased vigilance and installation of more surveillance cameras.
Prison and jail authorities should pursue other strategies, too.
One mentioned by attorneys representing the women in these pending lawsuits is to avoid having male corrections officers supervising women prisoners. For decades, "cross-gender" supervision was viewed as undesirable in women's facilities because of the risks of sexual assaults to women. But courts in the United States have issued mixed rulings in recent years regarding whether banning cross-gender supervision runs afoul of equal employment rights of correction officers. Another complication is finding enough qualified female corrections officers to supervise a growing female prison population.
Thornton said implementing an all-female work force for female inmates would be virtually impossible, considering the struggles that the state has recruiting correctional officers overall. However, that shouldn't prevent the state from going as far as it can to meet that goal.
Whenever possible, assigning female officers to supervise female inmates in the most sensitive situations -- for example, when the inmates are showering -- only makes sense. And doing everything possible to have a mix of male and female officers working the same shifts could help deter misconduct.
Continued expansion of surveillance cameras also should help. And while Thornton says the state already has a "no-tolerance" policy for sexual misconduct, making that clear to officers in no uncertain terms before and during their tenures in prisons and jails could help. Certainly, aggressive disciplinary action and criminal prosecution should be automatic steps when misconduct is uncovered.
It's encouraging that several violators have been "ferreted out," as plaintiff attorneys put it, but the state's prison and jail officials clearly need to take a harder look and make necessary changes to protect inmates. Inmates may have broken the law, but none is sentenced to be the victim of sexual abuse.
