Justice Department Notifies Washington of Investigation into Whether Housing Biological Men in Women’s Prison Violates Constitution

Today, the Justice Department notified Washington Governor Bob Ferguson of the initiation of a federal investigation into Washington's practice of housing men in its women's prison. The Justice Department will investigate whether Washington engages in a pattern or practice of violating the constitutional rights of female prisoners incarcerated at the Washington Corrections Center for Women (WCCW) in Gig Harbor, Washington.

"Under my leadership, the Civil Rights Division will not allow women incarcerated in jails or prisons to be subject to unconstitutional risks of harm from male inmates," said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. "The constitutional rights of women cannot be sacrificed at the altar of appeasing unsupported and dangerous ideologies."

"Washington State must protect women inmates from the inherent dangers of incarcerating them with biological men" said Interim U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd for the Western District of Washington. "Our Constitution protects the civil rights of every American, including woman who are in prison and forced by the State of Washington to live with male inmates."

The Justice Department will investigate allegations of deprivation of female prisoners' Eighth Amendment protections from cruel and unusual punishment, including Washington's response to allegations of sexual assaults, rape, voyeurism, and sexual intimidation based on WCCW's housing of male prisoners in the exclusively female facility.

The Department has not reached any conclusions regarding the allegations in this matter. The Department will investigate WCCW pursuant to its authority to enforce the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA). Under CRIPA, the Department has the authority to investigate violations of prisoners' constitutional rights that result from a "pattern or practice of resistance to the full enjoyment of such rights." The Department has conducted CRIPA investigations of many correctional systems, and where violations have been found, the resulting settlement agreements have led to important reforms.

Individuals with relevant information are encouraged to contact the Department via www.civilrights.justice.gov/report/. The Department is also collecting information on men housed in women's jails and prisons anywhere in the country. Individuals can reach the National Initiative Examining the Housing of Biological Men in Women's Prisons at (202) 616-5939 or [email protected]. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.