Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

3 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

3 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

4 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

4 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

4 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

4 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

4 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

4 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

4 days ago
US to Pay Nearly $116M to Settle Lawsuits Over Rampant Sexual Abuse at California Women's Prison
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 7 months ago on
December 17, 2024

The U.S. government agrees to pay $116 million to settle lawsuits over sexual abuse at a California women's prison.

Share

NEW YORK — The U.S. government will pay nearly $116 million to resolve lawsuits brought by more than 100 women who say they were abused or mistreated at a now-shuttered federal prison in California that was known as the “rape club” because of rampant staff-on-inmate sexual misconduct.

Under settlements approved Tuesday, the Justice Department will pay an average of about $1.1 million to each of 103 women who filed individual lawsuits against the Bureau of Prisons over their treatment at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California.

The settlement follows one in a separate class-action last week in which the Bureau of Prisons agreed to open some of its facilities to a court-appointed monitor and publicly acknowledge pervasive abuse and retaliation at FCI Dublin.

Survivors Speak Out

“We were sentenced to prison, we were not sentenced to be assaulted and abused,” lawsuit plaintiff and former Dublin prisoner Aimee Chavira said.

“I hope this settlement will help survivors, like me, as they begin to heal – but money will not repair the harm that BOP did to us, or free survivors who continue to suffer in prison, or bring back survivors who were deported and separated from their families,” Chavira said.

The Bureau of Prisons acknowledged the settlements in a statement Tuesday.

The agency said it “strongly condemns all forms of sexually abusive behavior and takes seriously its duty to protect the individuals in our custody as well as maintain the safety of our employees and community.”

Settlement Details and Reforms

Tuesday’s settlements cover an initial wave of lawsuits seeking monetary compensation from the Bureau of Prisons after a former warden and other employees at FCI Dublin went to prison for sexually abusing inmates. Subsequent lawsuits have yet to be resolved.

The Bureau of Prisons and lawyers for the plaintiffs said that a neutral, third-party process was used to determine individual settlement amounts.

Last week, in settling the class-action lawsuit, the Bureau of Prisons and plaintiffs’ lawyers filed a proposed consent decree calling for a variety of reforms, including a monitor to scrutinize the treatment of nearly 500 ex-Dublin prisoners now housed at more than a dozen federal lockups across the U.S.

Also under that agreement, agency director Colette Peters “will issue a formal, public acknowledgement to victims of staff sexual abuse at FCI Dublin” as part of the settlement.

Closure of FCI Dublin

The Bureau of Prisons temporarily closed FCI Dublin in April and announced last week that the low-security facility was being permanently shut down.

The Bureau of Prisons said in a statement that it agreed to “the substantive terms of a proposed settlement to resolve all injunctive claims” in the class-action lawsuit on Nov. 21 and that while that settlement was filed with the district court Friday, “the decision to permanently close FCI Dublin is not a result of the agreement.”

Some of the women who alleged abuse at Dublin say they have been the victims of similar misconduct at other institutions, and the AP has found multiple arrests and convictions of Bureau of Prisons staff members for sexually abusing prisoners at other federal lockups.

An AP investigation found a culture of abuse and cover-ups that had persisted for years at the prison. That reporting led to increased scrutiny from Congress and pledges from the Bureau of Prisons that it would fix problems and change the culture at the prison — promises that went by the wayside with Thursday’s closure announcement.

Since 2021, at least eight FCI Dublin employees have been charged with sexually abusing inmates.

Five have pleaded guilty. Two were convicted at trial, including former warden Ray Garcia. Another case is pending.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

DON'T MISS

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

DON'T MISS

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

DON'T MISS

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

DON'T MISS

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

DON'T MISS

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

DON'T MISS

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

DON'T MISS

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

DON'T MISS

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

UP NEXT

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

UP NEXT

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

UP NEXT

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

UP NEXT

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

UP NEXT

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

UP NEXT

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

UP NEXT

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

UP NEXT

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

UP NEXT

July 4 Weekend Was No Picnic for Fresno-Area Firefighters. How Bad Did It Get?

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

2 hours ago

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

2 hours ago

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

2 hours ago

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

2 hours ago

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

3 hours ago

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

3 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

3 hours ago

July 4 Weekend Was No Picnic for Fresno-Area Firefighters. How Bad Did It Get?

4 hours ago

Tulare County Seizes 300 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks Over Fourth of July

4 hours ago

US Proposes Rules That Could Boost Oil, Gas Output in US West

5 hours ago

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

WASHINGTON – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday told President Donald Trump he had nominated him for the Nobel Peace ...

58 minutes ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on during a bilateral dinner with U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured), at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
58 minutes ago

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
1 hour ago

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

A wind farm is shown in Movave, California, U.S., November 8, 2019. (Reuter File)
2 hours ago

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon testifies before a Senate Appropriations hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump's budget request for the Department of Education, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 3, 2025. (Reuters File)
2 hours ago

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

United States Department of Veterans Affairs logo and U.S. flag are seen in this illustration taken April 23, 2025. (Reuters File)
2 hours ago

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

A group of search and rescue workers paddle a boat in the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Sergio Flores)
2 hours ago

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

2 hours ago

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

Attendees visit the 23andMe booth at the RootsTech annual genealogical event in Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S., February 28, 2019. (Reuters File)
3 hours ago

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend