Memphis Standard

U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) have initiated a bipartisan inquiry aimed at protecting federal prison staff from sexual assault and harassment. This action follows reports highlighting incidents of inmate-on-staff sexual misconduct.

A February 2023 report by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (OIG) revealed that 40% of 7,000 surveyed Bureau of Prisons (BOP) staff reported experiencing sexual harassment by inmates.

"The DOJ OIG report, as well as personal testimony BOP staff has provided to my office, strongly suggest that BOP’s reporting and corrective procedures for inmate-on-staff sexual assault/harassment are inadequate, creating an institutional culture that lacks accountability and endangers BOP employees," the Senators wrote in their letter to BOP Director Colette Peters.

As part of their inquiry, the Senators have requested detailed information from the BOP regarding their procedures for reporting inmate-on-staff sexual assault and harassment, methods for correctional actions, and available staff assistance programs. This request includes statistics and data from Federal Correctional Institution Atlanta (formerly USP Atlanta) and other federal prison facilities nationwide.

Senator Blackburn previously co-sponsored the Federal Prisons Accountability Act to enhance oversight and accountability within the federal prison system. Tennessee is home to one federal prison—Federal Correctional Institution Memphis—in Shelby County.

The full text of the letter sent by Senators Blackburn and Ossoff can be accessed here.