Landmark Settlement Agreement Reached in Class Action on Sexual Abuse at FCI Dublin

PC: Jesstess87 Via Wikimedia Commons

On Friday, the parties reached an unprecedented settlement agreement in California Coalition for Women Prisoners et al. v. United States Bureau of Prisons et al., a class action lawsuit against the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Dublin officials over systemic staff sexual abuse, retaliation, and medical neglect at the now-shuttered facility. After a series of failed efforts to get the case thrown out, the BOP has agreed to enter into a Consent Decree to safeguard the rights of hundreds of class members, now incarcerated at federal prisons across the country. The proposed Consent Decree was submitted to the court on Friday morning and, if approved, will provide key protections to FCI Dublin survivors and ongoing court monitoring for the next two years.

“This settlement is historic. It is the first time in BOP history that monitoring will be enforced by consent decree across over a dozen federal women’s prisons nationwide. This reflects the lived reality of the class members in this lawsuit: the problems at FCI Dublin were not unique to that facility, and the BOP has failed people in its custody across the country,” said Amaris Montes, an attorney with Rights Behind Bars who represents class members along with co-counsel at the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice, Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld, and Arnold & Porter.

“The California Coalition for Women Prisoners brought this lawsuit with courageous survivors to expose the BOP’s unacceptable conduct and culture of sexual abuse and to win concrete changes,” said Emily Shapiro, an advocate with CCWP (California Coalition for Women Prisoners) and the Dublin Prison Solidarity Coalition. “This proposed Consent Decree is a historic victory, but our work is just beginning—we will fight to ensure the agreement is fully implemented, and we will remain in daily communication with FCI Dublin survivors and continue to demand their freedom, bold policy changes across the prison system, and ultimately, community-based alternatives to prisons and the gender violence they perpetuate.”

The historic class action lawsuit was filed in August 2023 by eight survivors of staff abuse and CCWP on behalf of all individuals who were then incarcerated at the prison. In March 2024, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction finding that people incarcerated at FCI Dublin faced an ongoing risk of abuse and unconstitutional conditions and appointed a “Special Master” to oversee the prison, the first such outside monitor in BOP history. Days after the monitor began work, BOP abruptly closed the facility and moved hundreds of class members to prisons across the country under inhumane conditions, in an apparent attempt to evade accountability. Despite multiple unsuccessful attempts by BOP to end monitoring and terminate the lawsuit, the court has continued to oversee treatment and conditions of people transferred from Dublin, who continue to report sexual assault, retaliation, and medical neglect at their new facilities.

“People currently and formerly incarcerated at Dublin have fought long and hard for this victory,” said Griselda Muniz, a named plaintiff in the case. “Now BOP must follow the agreement for the people still in custody. Ultimately, we are praying for their return home, as they deserve to heal from these traumatic events with their loved ones.”

The proposed Consent Decree is the product of months of negotiations between the BOP and currently and formerly incarcerated survivors, CCWP, and Class Counsel. If approved, the Consent Decree will be enforced at over a dozen federal women’s prisons where nearly 500 class members are now housed, for the next two years. The tentative agreement mandates robust oversight and remedies for issues related to staff sexual and physical abuse, retaliation, medical care, and case work. Key provisions include:

• Extensive monitoring and public reporting: The monitor will investigate and report on the treatment and conditions of class members and BOP’s The monitor will have access to class members and BOP staff, facilities, and records, and will make public monthly reports on a range of issues facing class members, including staff abuse and retaliation, medical care, and application of early release credits and timely release to halfway houses.
• Outside supports: Class members will have ongoing and confidential access to the monitor, attorneys, and community-based counselors to report abuse and violations of the Consent
• Limitations on solitary confinement (SHU): To prevent retaliatory SHU (secure housing units) placements, class members will not be placed in SHU for low-level disciplinary charges (absent specific security threats), and will be guaranteed timely disciplinary Class members in SHU will have access to the monitor, confidential legal calls, and reporting mechanisms, and class members in non-punitive segregation will be guaranteed basic privileges.
• Protections related to Dublin transfers: BOP will restore early release credits lost as a result of the Dublin transfers, and will review and expunge invalid disciplinary write ups by Dublin staff, to ensure class members do not lose opportunities for release or community placement.
• Designations and release: BOP will release eligible class members to halfway houses and home confinement as soon as practicable, and will not deny early release on the basis of immigration status or a detainer BOP will house class members as close to their families as practicable, and in the lowest security facility possible. Class members will no longer be housed long term at pretrial detention facilities or transfer centers.
• Public acknowledgment of abuse: The BOP Director will issue a formal, public acknowledgement to survivors of staff sexual abuse at FCI Dublin.

“Without rigorous monitoring and enforcement, this agreement is only words on paper,” said Kara Janssen, Senior Counsel at Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld. “Class Counsel will be closely watching BOP, going to the institutions, meeting with our class members, and will hold BOP accountable to ensure these changes reach our class members. This is the end of one chapter but much work remains for the next and we will be there to make sure it happens.”

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