The Justice Department, which filed the lawsuits in federal district courts in Phoenix and Detroit, brought the cases under a 1980 civil rights law aimed at protecting the rights of citizens housed in state and local government institutions - including correctional facilities. In 1994, the Justice Department began investigating two women's correctional facilities in Michigan after allegations of sexual assault and misconduct. It also received complaints about three Arizona facilities early in 1995.
After its investigations, the Justice Department contended that female inmates at the Arizona Center for Women and at state prisons in Alhambra, Perryville and Tucson suffered instances of sexual assault, sexual misconduct and unlawful invasions of privacy.
Similarly, at Michigan's Scott and Crane correctional centers, female inmates have been subjected to the same violations. Upon further investigation, the Justice Department found inadequate medical and mental health care as well. The allegations pose a serious potential threat to human rights - subsequent civil rights investigations and pending trials must proceed with the utmost care.
While sexual assault is always a terrifying, humiliating and belittling prospect, female inmates are uniquely vulnerable. Prison guards and employees occupy significant power positions; abuse of that power - especially in the form of sexual misconduct - must end immediately. For state-run prisons to violate basic principles of conduct is a travesty. The federal government must not allow such heinous civil rights infractions to remain unnoticed and unpunished.
Both lawsuits seek court orders requiring the states to protect female inmates from rapes, sexual assaults and other sexual contact by staff members. The Justice Department is seeking court orders to ensure that inmates and staff members do not engage in sexual relations of any kind and that female inmates are not viewed in a prurient manner when showering, changing clothes or using toilets.
The allegations are another stab at the state-run correctional facilities, as it becomes obvious that the institutions are in dire need of supervision and improvements. Officials of both Michigan and Arizona's correctional facilities refused to allow Justice Department investigators access to the institutions, nor would they allow interviews with facility inmates or staff members - a sure sign that problems exist just below the surface.
The government must find a way to improve the country's correctional facilities and remedy the civil rights infractions that occur on their premises. A correctional facility should be a place where inmates can begin the process to make them fit for society - they should not feel threats of violence or abuse at the hands of their protectors.
The Justice Department should continue to investigate state-run correctional facilities to make necessary improvements and safeguard those who have little recourse to protect themselves.