FCI Dublin still has constitutional violations even though it's closed: judge
Powerless in Prison: The fallout of FCI Dublin
In April, the Bureau of Prisons abruptly shut down the troubled FCI Dublin. KTVU interviews dozens of women and explains what led up to the closure, questioning whether this was retaliation for outside oversight over the prison, which has been riddled with sex abuse for decades.
DUBLIN, Calif. - The Federal Correctional Institute at Dublin still must address constitutional violations even though the all-women's prison shut down nearly two months ago, a judge has ruled.
In a July 3 order, U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez revealed that many of the punishments for some of the 605 women who used to be incarcerated at FCI Dublin were improperly meted out – something the women have long complained about.
Disciplinary actions could include being put in the SHU, or a special housing unit, similar to solitary confinement, or being barred from buying items at the commissary. Disciplinary actions could also extend prison time and extend release dates.
Over the last two years, dozens of women have told KTVU that they have been punished for minor offenses or no offenses at all, but were still disciplined for reporting allegations of sexual abuse.
Now that FCI Dublin is closed, what are 200 correctional officers doing?
Now that the all-women's Federal Correctional Institute at Dublin has been closed for two months and the 605 women transferred to other prisons around the country, what are the employees and correctional officers doing?
This issue came to light, Gonzalez Rogers wrote, when court-appointed Special Master Wendy Still asked a hearing officer to review a sample of 10 disciplinary actions. That administrator ended up expunging all of them, the judge noted, though no specifics were offered.
"Based on the serious errors and due process violations," the judge said that all 522 disciplinary actions the BOP meted out from Jan. 1 to the prison's closure on May 1 were reviewed.
She said that after this review, 120, or 22%, were expunged, meaning that the women who were unfairly disciplined will now have their time credits and classifications re-calculated.
Gonzalez Rogers said because nearly ¼ of these disciplinary cases were found to have been improperly handled, she now wants three years of disciplinary actions, from 2020 to 2023, to be reviewed.
In addition, Gonzalez Rogers said there are still roughly 200 medical and mental health issues that still need to be addressed and resolved, even as the incarcerated women are now in other prisons across the country, in places including Miami, West Virginia and Texas.
The judge ordered the BOP to work with the special master, whom she appointed in April, 10 days before the BOP director announced she'd be closing FCI Dublin.
Lisa Fernandez is a reporter for KTVU. Email Lisa at lisa.fernandez@fox.com or call her at 510-874-0139. Or follow her on Twitter @ljfernandez