Effective review of prospects and challenges of sentence reductions for women sexually abused by guards

Writing at Bolts, Piper French has this legnthy review of the issues surrounding efforts by women in federal prison who have been sexually abused to secure compassionate release.  The piece is fully titled “’What’s More Extraordinary and Compelling?’: Women who suffered sexual abuse at the hands of guards at a notorious federal prison in California are now seeking compassionate release.”  I recommend the article in full, and here are excerpts:

It’s difficult to imagine a more serious abuse of power than a prison guard who preys on a person whose every action he already controls — her communication with the outside world, her visits with her family; her access to food, supplies, showers, medical care.  Federal prison officials allowed this type of abuse to go on unchecked for years.  Now that the story has broken open, the litigation, prosecutions, and efforts to establish broader federal oversight are really attempts to answer one central question: What does an appropriate remedy look like? 

Lately, lawyers representing the survivors are trying a novel strategy: compassionate release.  The mechanism, generally conceived of as a last-resort option for dying or medically incapacitated prisoners, is for the first time being considered as a reparative measure for women who were sexually abused while in federal custody. 

“We thought, what’s more extraordinary and compelling, which is the standard for compassionate release, than being sexually abused by prison guards after your sentence has been imposed?” said Shanna Rifkin, deputy general counsel for Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), who is spearheading the effort.  “No federal judge sentences people to be sexually abused in prison.” 

FAMM and the pro bono lawyers working with them have helped secure compassionate release for 17 former inhabitants of FCI Dublin thus far, and they’re evaluating 95 additional requests for legal aid from women formerly held at the facility.  But seeking this remedy has come with its own challenges — ones that underscore precisely why it’s so difficult to eradicate sexual violence in prison.