Survivor Stories
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Johanna, California
Johanna, California
Johanna was raped by her work supervisor while serving time at a California state prison. After reporting her rapist, Johanna faced severe retaliation, and was eventually transferred to a prison in Nevada. A member of JDI’s Survivor Council, Johanna is a leading advocate in the fight to ensure the safety of incarcerated people.
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Trish, Oklahoma
Trish, Oklahoma
Trish is a transgender woman who has been sexually abused repeatedly during her 30 years of being incarcerated in men’s prisons in Oklahoma.
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Kristal, Connecticut
Kristal, Connecticut
Kristal was sexually assaulted in a holding cell by a marshal tasked with transporting her to court.
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Alairis, Louisiana
Alairis, Louisiana
Alairis was sexually assaulted repeatedly by her work supervisor. After she reported the assault, prison officials berated her and transferred her to a new facility, forcing her out of her bachelor’s degree program.
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Rafael, New York
Rafael, New York
After serving 23 years without incident, Rafael encountered a corrections officer who conducted abusive pat searches on inmates. Despite Rafael’s effort to report the officer, nothing was done.
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JDI has made only minor edits for spelling and clarity. Please note that some of these stories are graphic and may be difficult to read.
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While in a Los Angeles jail, Frank suffered persistent harassment by corrections officers for being openly gay. After a particularly intense verbal attack, Frank was beaten and raped by an officer in the middle of the night. He was released a few days later, and filed formal complaints.
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A female corrections officer regularly groped and verbally harassed Beverly during pat searches at the Crain Unit, a women’s prison run by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. After reporting the abuse, she was transferred to a maximum security prison far away from her family.
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Stephen was brutally gang-raped after being arrested at a Quaker pray-in at the White House. He contracted HIV as a consequence of the rape, and later died from an AIDS-related illness.
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While detained at the Rappahannock Regional Jail, a male corrections officer sexually assaulted Loretta over a period of months. She reported the abuse, which led to the officer’s conviction on sexual misconduct charges. As a result, staff and inmates have retaliated against Loretta.
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At the age of 22, Meagan was sent to prison in Kentucky where she was abused for months by a corrections officer. Despite her fears, she reported the abuse, and was raped by two other corrections officers in retaliation for speaking out.