DOJ documents guard sexual abuse at two California women's prisons

Staff assigned to investigate misconduct were often themselves accused

The U.S. Department of Justice found that California’s prison system failed to protect incarcerated women from sexual abuse and harassment by guards at two state facilities, according to a federal investigation released Thursday.

The federal investigation focused on the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla and the California Institution for Women in Chino. Federal investigators documented numerous instances in which guards regularly sexually abused incarcerated women, the department said.

The investigation found that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation did not provide a safe way for victims to report abuse without retaliation. Staff assigned to investigate misconduct were often themselves accused of sexual abuse or harassment, according to the DOJ findings.

The investigation began during the Biden administration.

In at least one case, a guard was convicted of abuse that occurred over roughly a decade and was sentenced to 224 years in prison.