LAS VEGAS, Nev. — A woman formerly incarcerated in Nevada has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the founder of a prominent prison reentry nonprofit of sexually abusing her while she was in state custody and alleging that corrections officials and nonprofit administrators failed to protect women despite receiving complaints about his conduct.
The lawsuit, filed Oct. 29 in U.S. District Court, names Jon Ponder, founder of Hope for Prisoners, along with the nonprofit and the Nevada Department of Corrections as defendants, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The plaintiff, identified in court documents only as RS, alleges that Ponder used his position and access to incarcerated women to groom and sexually exploit her at Jean Conservation Camp and the nonprofit’s Las Vegas offices. She alleges the abuse continued after her release from prison.
The complaint alleges that Ponder used authority granted through his relationship with the Nevada Department of Corrections to exploit women who depended on him for access to their families, employment opportunities and assistance with reentry.
“Ponder used that delegated authority as a tool to sexually exploit the women placed under it, repeatedly and over a period of years,” the lawsuit states, according to the Review-Journal.
“He targeted women whose freedom, families, and futures he could influence, many of them mothers desperate to see their children,” the complaint continues. “He isolated them where no camera or officer could see. And he demanded their silence.”
The lawsuit accuses the Nevada Department of Corrections of failing to protect incarcerated women from sexual abuse, alleging that officials exempted Ponder from security and conduct requirements and disregarded complaints about his behavior.
The complaint also alleges negligence by Hope for Prisoners, including failures to properly hire, supervise and retain employees.
According to the Review-Journal, RS alleges that Ponder exploited her desire to maintain contact with her children, using his ability to facilitate visits as a means of gaining influence over her.
The woman told investigators there was nothing she would not do to see her children, according to the lawsuit.
During her incarceration, RS was among a group of women transported to Hope for Prisoners’ headquarters to wrap gifts for a Christmas event.
The complaint alleges that Ponder took her into his office, away from corrections officers, and forced her to perform a sexual act.
The alleged abuse continued after RS was released into residential confinement, according to the lawsuit.
“Throughout this period, RS understood that Ponder could help or hurt her standing with the State, that her residential confinement could be revoked, and that he could help her get a job at Hope for Prisoners,” the complaint states, as reported by the Review-Journal.
“She feared that if she did not go along with Ponder’s demands, it would affect her release status and negatively harm her ability to remain out of prison.”
Ponder is also facing criminal prosecution stemming from allegations involving multiple women who were incarcerated or participating in reentry programs.
According to the Review-Journal, he was arrested in August on suspicion of nine felonies and 11 gross misdemeanors, including sexual assault. A grand jury subsequently indicted him on additional charges in September as more accusers came forward.
The charges reported by the newspaper include four counts of sexual assault, two counts of first-degree kidnapping and multiple counts of sexual abuse of a prisoner by a prison contractor or volunteer.
Ponder has not been convicted of those charges, and the allegations in the civil lawsuit have not been established in court.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department detectives alleged that Ponder exploited his relationship with the Nevada Department of Corrections and his authority over women involved in prison and reentry programs.
According to an arrest report cited by the Review-Journal, investigators concluded that Ponder deliberately targeted women whose criminal convictions and custody status limited their opportunities.
“Ponder intentionally chooses women he knows and believes have limited opportunities due to their convictions and custody status within NDOC,” the arrest report states.
“He often uses personal information he gains through his position and specifically targets single mothers who are looking to maintain or regain custody of their children.”
The federal lawsuit also raises questions about whether Hope for Prisoners administrators and state corrections officials had opportunities to intervene before additional allegations emerged.
According to the Review-Journal, both the criminal investigation and civil complaint allege that the nonprofit’s board had been informed of sexual misconduct allegations involving Ponder as early as 2020.
The organization’s legal counsel reportedly recommended terminating Ponder that year, but he remained in his leadership position.
The civil complaint further alleges that Hope for Prisoners suppressed subsequent employee complaints and that corrections staff reported concerns about Ponder to supervisors without receiving an adequate response.
The lawsuit claims that prison officials dismissed or ignored those reports, allowing Ponder to maintain access to incarcerated women.
The plaintiff argues that the nonprofit should have recognized the risk posed by the allegations and taken steps to protect women participating in its programs.
“Given HFP’s notice of Ponder’s sexual misconduct beginning in 2020, the reports it received in 2025, and the vulnerability of the women in its care, the risk that women in HFP’s custody and programs would be sexually abused by Ponder on HFP’s premises and at its events was foreseeable,” the lawsuit states.
According to the Review-Journal, it was unclear whether Ponder had retained an attorney to represent him in the federal civil case.
Hope for Prisoners and the Nevada Department of Corrections did not immediately respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment.
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