Wife of California inmate wins $5.6 million in settlement for strip search
Associated PressThe wife of a California inmate will receive $5.6 million after being sexually violated during a strip search when she tried to visit her husband in prison, her attorneys said Monday. After traveling four hours to see her husband at a correctional facility in Tehachapi, Calif. on Sept. 6, 2019, Christina Cardenas was subject to a strip search by prison officials, drug and pregnancy tests, X-ray and CT scans at a hospital, and another strip search by a male doctor who sexually violated her, a lawsuit said. Prison officials conducted their searches on the basis of a warrant, which said a strip search could only be conducted if an X-ray found any foreign objects that could be contraband in Cardenas’ body, her attorneys said. Earlier this year the federal Bureau of Prisons announced it will close a women’s prison in Northern California known as the “rape club” after an Associated Press investigation exposed rampant sexual abuse by correctional officers.
History of this topic
U.S. to pay $116M settlement over rampant sexual abuse at Calif. women's prison
NPR
Woman Who Was Cavity Searched While Visiting Husband In Prison Receives $5.6 Million
Huff Post
She endured a traumatic cavity search when visiting a California prison. Now she won a $5.6-million settlement
LA TimesThe Justice Department is investigating sexual abuse allegations at California women’s prisons
Associated Press
Widespread sexual abuse of women in two California prisons draws federal investigation
LA Times
‘Every woman’s worst nightmare’: Lawsuit alleges widespread sexual abuse at California prisons for women
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