Survivor Stories
-
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.
Read more -
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.
Read more -
Kristal, Connecticut
Kristal, Connecticut
Kristal was sexually assaulted in a holding cell by a marshal tasked with transporting her to court.
Read more -
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.
Read more -
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.
Read more -
Ca’Linda, Kentucky
Ca’Linda, Kentucky
Ca’Linda was sexually abused repeatedly by staff in two different Kentucky facilities. Although she bravely reported her abuse to prison officials and the police, Ca’Linda was not protected from further sexual assaults. Nor were her attackers held accountable. Ca’Linda is traumatized by the abuse, but finds comfort in sharing her story.
Read more
Some of these stories are graphic, uncensored accounts of actual rapes and surrounding circumstances. The language used may be raw and include street slang. JDI has made only minor edits for spelling and clarity. The views expressed are those of the individual survivor/author, and are not necessarily the views of Just Detention International.
-
An insulin dependent diabetic, James has been sexually assaulted by staff and inmates in state and federal prisons. Most recently, he was gang-raped in a Texas prison. He filed a report, but no investigation was conducted as James couldn’t identify the perpetrators.
-
Held in jail for the weekend, Cecilia, a transgender woman, was sexually assaulted in the gay and transgender housing wing.
-
Toni Lynn was sexually assaulted by an officer at a California state prison. Like many survivors, Toni Lynn tells of the shame and self-recrimination that resulted from the abuse.
-
Charlie was sexually abused by a female corrections officer at a Georgia state prison. He reported the abuse, and faced retaliation from staff as a result.
-
An openly gay man, Sidney has been repeatedly sexually abused in Texas prisons. He was first raped at the age of 17 while housed in an adult facility. Later, like many other inmates, he was forced to enter into a sexually abusive relationship with a more powerful inmate in exchange for protection from further violence. Sidney continues to suffer from the trauma of the sexual assaults and fears it will happen again.