Montgomery, AL – A prisoner's rights group has asked the U.S. Justice Department to look into alleged sexual abuse of inmates by guards at an Alabama women's prison.
The Equal Justice Initiative says it filed a complaint with the Justice Department on Tuesday. It claims guards at the Tutwiler Prison for Women in Wetumpka have raped inmates, sexually assaulted them, exchanged smuggled contraband for sexual favors and sexually harassed them.
The Justice Department could not immediately be reached. The Alabama Corrections Department declined to comment on the allegations.
The Equal Justice Initiative contends that guards use intimidation and threats of punishment to discourage women from reporting sexual abuse.
The group claims it received numerous complaints over the last five years from women who say they've become pregnant after being raped by guards.
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