Ex-California prison officer accused of sexual misconduct
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – A former corrections officer at California’s largest women’s prison has been accused of engaging in sexual misconduct with at least 22 inmates, state prison officials said Wednesday.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said it has shared the results of an internal investigation into Gregory Rodriguez, a former officer at the Central California Institution for Women, with the Madera County District Attorney’s Office. No charges have yet been filed against Rodriguez, said Dana Simas, a spokeswoman for the corrections department.
The misconduct at the hands of prison officials “breaks the public trust,” Jeff Macomber, secretary of the corrections department, said in a news release.
“We are continuing this investigation to ensure we are rooting out any law-abiding employees and to search for additional victims,” Macomber said.
The investigation began in July after officials discovered possible sexual conduct by Rodriguez against inmates at the Central California Women’s Center, the department said. The prison is located in Chowchilla, a city in California about 120 miles (190 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco.
The corrections department said Rodriguez retired in August after being approached about the investigation.
It’s the latest allegation of abuse by prison officials at California facilities. An Associated Press investigation found that a top Federal Bureau of Prisons official who previously worked at a women’s prison in the San Francisco Bay Area was repeatedly promoted after allegations that he assaulted inmates. Another investigation found a pattern of sexual abuse by correctional officers at the women’s facility.
The state corrections department news release did not specify the type of conduct Rodriguez allegedly engaged in. But the state’s charges against Rodriguez come after attorney Robert Chalfant filed two federal civil rights lawsuits in early December alleging Rodriguez raped two inmates, known in the suit as Jane Doe and Jane Roe.
Federal court records did not list an attorney for Rodriguez, and attempts by The Associated Press to reach him through phone numbers found in public records were unsuccessful. The lawsuits were first reported by The Sacramento Bee.
The district attorney’s office did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. But Madera County District Attorney Sally Moreno told the Sacramento Bee that her office received the results of the state’s internal investigation last week. She said her office is still reviewing the information.
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Sophie Austin is a staff member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a national nonprofit service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercover issues. Follow Austin on Twitter: @sophieadanna
