By Mike Cason
al.com
WETUMPKA, Ala. — The U.S. Department of Justice’s long-running case sparked by years of sexual abuse of women at Alabama’s Julia Tutwiler Prison came to an end Thursday.
Following an agreement between the DOJ and the state, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson dismissed the case and a consent decree that had been in place since 2015.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced the decision.
“This judgment marks an important milestone for Alabama,” Marshall said in a press release.
“Over the past decade, the Alabama Department of Corrections has made real, measurable progress in strengthening oversight and safety at Tutwiler, and this judgment reflects that work.”
The consent decree required Alabama to make changes at the prison to cover staff training, policies, oversight, and how allegations of abuse are reported and investigated, the AG’s office said.
A monitor found Tutwiler in compliance with all 44 requirements of the decree, leading the DOJ Justice Department and the state to jointly ask the court to lift most of the remaining oversight.
The ruling terminates any outstanding requirements and closes the case for good, the AG’s office said.
A DOJ report in 2014 outlined allegations of prison guards harassing and sexually abusing inmates for nearly two decades.
The DOJ’s report condemned the “toxic, sexualized environment” at Tutwiler and the failure of prison officials to address the problem, despite having knowledge that it persisted.
The violations ranged from verbal abuse and voyeurism to forced sexual contact between prisoners and Tutwiler staff members, according to the report.
In 2024, the DOJ moved to scale back its oversight of the prison after reports from court-appointed monitors showed the Alabama Department of Corrections had complied with most of the requirements in the consent decree.
The consent decree required policies and procedures to prevent, detect, and respond to sexual abuse and harassment and give the women at Tutwiler a safe and secure environment as required by the U.S. Constitution.
A DOJ lawsuit alleging unconstitutional prisons in Alabama men’s prisons is ongoing.
The DOJ sued Alabama in December 2020, alleging a failure to protect prisoners from inmate-on-inmate violence and sexual abuse, failure to protect them from excessive force by staff, and failure to provide safe conditions.
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