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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Valjean Royal is a transgender woman who has survived multiple sexual assaults since she was first detained as a 17-year-old. She has endured sexual abuse in county jails and in state and federal prisons.
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Two inmates raped Bill when he was in a Connecticut jail after being picked up on drug charges.
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In the summer of 2001, when I was just a teenager, a police officer sexually assaulted me outside my apartment complex in Virginia. As I was walking on the sidewalk with a friend, sometime after 11:00 pm, two white police officers stopped us. Then they frisked us. The officer who was frisking me grabbed my private part. I immediately complained, and he responded by grabbing me by my shirt from behind and choking me. He stopped only after the other police officer told him that somebody across the street was watching.
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My name is Jayde and I am a mixed race, Native American, lesbian, transwoman. My story sheds light on corrupt and predatory law enforcement officers, who are supposed to protect, not victimize. The incident started while I was walking into a Colorado park at night, in 2002.
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Like other transgender women in men’s prisons, Ophelia was repeatedly sexual assaulted by inmates and staff. Female corrections officers singled Ophelia out and sexually assaulted her multiple times. She bravely reported these crimes, but Ophelia was never offered any treatment. In her testimony, she describes how this violence has shattered her life.