SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday that it has opened an investigation into allegations that correctional officers systematically sexually abused incarcerated women at two state-run California prisons.
Authorities found “significant justification” to open an investigation into the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla and the California Institution for Women in Chino, the DOJ said in a news release. Both are run by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The corrections department said in a statement Wednesday that it does not tolerate sexual abuse in its prisons and that it welcomes the investigation.
The formal inquiry was sparked by hundreds of private lawsuits over the past two years alleging that women incarcerated at the Chowchilla prison were raped or otherwise sexually abused, according to the news release. A single lawsuit filed on behalf of 21 women incarcerated at the Chino facility alleges that from 2014 to 2020, correction officers there groped and forcibly raped the women, forced them to participate in oral copulation, and threatened them with violence, the release said.
“No woman incarcerated in a jail or prison should be subjected to sexual abuse by prison staff who are constitutionally bound to protect them,” said Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
Correctional staff are accused of seeking sexual favors in return for contraband and other privileges, according to the Justice Department. It added that some of the accused include prison officials who are responsible for handling sexual abuse complaints at the facilities.
Jeff Macomber, secretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said in a statement that the department welcomes the independent investigation. “Sexual assault is a heinous violation of fundamental human dignity that is not tolerated — under any circumstances — within California’s state prison system,” he said.
In April, the federal Bureau of Prisons announced it will close a women’s prison in Northern California known as the “rape club” after an Associated Press investigation exposed rampant sexual abuse by correctional officers.
Chino is about 35 miles (56 kilometers) east of Los Angeles. Chowchilla is about 145 miles (233 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco.
The logo for the Justice Department is seen before a news conference at the Department of Justice, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Jake Sanderson scored 15 seconds into overtime and the Ottawa Senators stretched their win streak to six games with a 5-4 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night.
It’s the first time since March 2017 that Ottawa has won six in a row.
Shane Pinto scored twice for the Senators, Claude Giroux added a goal and Josh Norris scored short-handed. Sanderson also contributed a pair of assists.
Leevi Merilainen stopped 21 shots to earn his first NHL victory.
Brock Boeser scored twice for the Canucks, and Quinn Hughes had a goal and two assists. Jake DeBrusk rounded out the scoring for a Vancouver side that lost its third straight outing (0-1-2). Kevin Lankinen made 17 saves.
Canucks: The team has lost four of its last five outings and some of its top stars have gone cold offensively. J.T. Miller has not scored in the six games he’s played since returning from a 10-game absence, Elias Pettersson does not have a point in his last six outings and Conor Garland last recorded a goal on Nov. 29.
Senators: Merilainen stepped in for Linus Ullmark, who has been a superstar for Ottawa in recent weeks. Heading into Saturday, Ullmark had powered the team to five straight victories after backup Anton Forsberg went down with an injury during a pre-game skate on Dec. 14.
Boeser knotted the score at 4 with 4:50 left in the game when he blasted a rebound past Merilainen.
Hughes now has 40 points on the season (eight goals, 32 assists). He is the seventh defenseman in NHL history to hit the mark in 33 or fewer games in multiple seasons.
The Senators visit the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday, and the Canucks host the San Jose Sharks on Monday.
AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
Ottawa Senators' Jake Sanderson (85) scores on Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (35) during overtime of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)
Ottawa Senators goaltender Leevi Merilainen (1) stops the puck against the Vancouver Canucks during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)
Vancouver Canucks' Brock Boeser, right, celebrates his goal against the Ottawa Senators with Quinn Hughes (43) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)
Ottawa Senators' Jake Sanderson (85) celebrates his game-winning goal with Brady Tkachuk (7) after overtime of an NHL hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)
