Resistance Behind Bars: The Struggles of Incarcerated Women

from The Wall Street Journal Report:

The leaders of a Virginia prison with one of the highest reported percentages of inmate rape and sexual misconduct in the country said Tuesday they have worked to correct the problem with management changes and more investigators and cameras.

The officials from Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women, the largest prison for women in Virginia, testified before a Department of Justice panel created to examine sexual victimization in prisons and jails across the country. Also facing scrutiny by the panel are two men's prisons, one in Wichita Falls, Texas, and another in Elmira, N.Y.

A national survey of inmates released in 2010 found that all three prisons had higher than average rates of sexual victimization, whether between inmates or inmates and staff. On average, four percent of prisoners reported experiencing sexual victimization in prison, ranging from rape to inappropriate touching during pat downs or strip searches.

You can read the entire article, which does *not* go into graphic detail about the sexual assualts, here: http://online.wsj.com/article/APd06eb152c12a4554bf6827db4d783802.html

Thanks to Lois at The Real Cost of Prisons Project for bringing this to my attention!