(Editor's note: This article contains descriptions of violence that some readers may find disturbing.)
The Department of Justice (DOJ) blasted the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) on Tuesday with a 93-page report finding that confinement conditions in the state’s prison system violate the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution banning cruel and unusual punishment.
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The report specifically noted the state fails to protect “persons who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI), from harm caused by sexual violence or abuse.”
The report revealed a litany of reported cases of violence and sexual assault that were closed by state officials without any corrective action. These include rape at knifepoint and the threat of violence, severe sexual assault, beatings, and confinement without food, as well as indifference from prison officials.
“Our findings report lays bare the horrific and inhumane conditions that people are confined to inside Georgia’s state prison system,” Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, said in a statement. “Our statewide investigation exposes long-standing, systemic violations stemming from complete indifference and disregard to the safety and security of people Georgia holds in its prisons.”
The report found GDC failed to protect incarcerated people from physical and sexual assault generally, but that LGBTQ+ individuals were particularly at risk.
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“GDC’s inadequate staffing and supervision practices lead to an environment where sexual violence among incarcerated people is rampant, and often is not appropriately detected, documented, or investigated,” the report found. “In this environment, incarcerated people who are LGBTI are particularly vulnerable to sexual abuse and to a substantial risk of serious harm from sexual abuse.”
The report provided specific incidents detailing some of the disturbing sexual assault cases that were reportedly closed by the Criminal Investigative Division of the state’s Office of Professional Standards (OPS) without proper investigation or corrective action.
In December of 2022, six men at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification State Prison reportedly tried to extort another inmate for money. Four of the men left after the victim refused, but two remained and “forcibly penetrated the man’s mouth” before locking him in his cell for 13 hours. The man suffered “wounds to his left ear and puncture wounds to his eye.”
Despite these findings, authorities decided to close the case for “lack of evidence” because a nurse examiner reportedly was “unable to detect the presence of seminal fluid.”
In January of 2023 at Autry State Prison, a man alleged he was raped at knifepoint by his roommate.
“Investigators found that the roommate had a weapon that matched the description the man provided,” the report read. “A chemical examination of a rectum swab indicated the presence of seminal fluid, and the man was found to have bruising to his anal area. Despite this, the final OPS investigative report incorrectly determined that no seminal fluid was detected, and the allegations were not substantiated.”
Two months later in March at Autry State Prison, a transgender woman reported she was sexually assaulted at knifepoint. The report noted the prison was inadequately staffed with only one officer present that night.
In May of 2022 at Augusta State Prison, an inmate dug a large hole in the wall separating the cell next to him. He used the hole to enter the cell and violently beat and sexually assaulted the neighboring prisoner. The victim suffered severe head trauma, requiring 26 staples to close, as well as a fractured rib and finger. Despite the significant injuries and finding blood in the victim’s cell and other evidence corroborating his version of events, prison officials closed the case by noting that “no seminal fluid was detected in the man’s anus or mouth.”
DOJ officials said they hope to work with state officials to correct and improve conditions for prisoners, including those from the LGBTQ+ community.
“We hope these findings are a wake-up call. Incarcerated people and staff in the Georgia Department of Corrections face unacceptable, systemic risks, and the impact affects all of our communities,” Peter Leary, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, said in a statement. “We hope to work collaboratively with the State of Georgia to improve these deadly conditions; indeed, the Constitution requires it.”
