Wisconsin prison officials in one year investigated 132 claims of staff sexually abusing or harassing inmates

Molly Beck | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

MADISON - Wisconsin prison officials investigated more than 100 complaints of correctional officers and staff sexually abusing or harassing inmates in one year, state records show.

Among the allegations reviewed, Department of Corrections officials found enough evidence to prove just 11 percent of the claims, or 15 cases involving correctional staff in positions of power creating intimate interactions or relationships with inmates they were charged with supervising, according to documents released under the state open records law.

The prison staff — including one guard trained in preventing such behavior — are accused of having sexual intercourse and forging romantic relationships with inmates, spanking them and making sexually harassing comments, among other allegations.

In one case, a male prison nurse is accused of having sexual intercourse and sexual contact with a female inmate multiple times in an exam room. In two other cases, female prison staff developed romantic relationships with male inmates by touching or kissing and writing romantic and sexual letters back and forth.

Two DOC staff members were disciplined for their behavior, two more guards were prosecuted with sexual assault, and all no longer work for the DOC.

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Federal law requires state prison officials to aggressively police interactions between prison staff and inmates, and DOC spokesman Tristan Cook said the department has "zero tolerance for sexual abuse and sexual harassment" within Wisconsin prisons.

That's because personal feelings or sexual intercourse between an inmate and a DOC staff member in a position of power over that offender could lead to preferential treatment, intimidation or an inmate manipulating the situation to have the staff member bring them things from outside the prisons.

"The main reason that DOC administration and guards take a hard line on inappropriate relationships between staff and offenders is fear of loss of secure operations," said University of Wisconsin Law School professor Kenneth Streit, who studies the state's prison systems.

"Offenders are well aware of the no-fraternization rule and DOC fears that staff who violate that rule are vulnerable to pressures to bring contraband into the prison and/or look the other way while on duty."

For example, a prison guard in Green Bay was fired after it was discovered she had given an inmate her home address and phone number, Streit said.

Problems across the country

Nationally, prison officials are tracking a significant increase in cases of prison staff sexually assaulting inmates.

Prison officials reported 24,661 allegations of sexual victimization in prisons, jails and other adult correctional facilities in 2015, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Justice. Just 6 percent were determined to have occurred, and nearly 60 percent of those were committed by inmates and about 40 percent by prison staff.

Claims of staff assaulting or harassing inmates rose 191 percent nationally between 2011 and 2015, according to the DOJ data.

"Because of the power differential, any sexual behavior between staff and offender is legally incapable of being consensual — no matter what the actual co-consent might have been," Streit said.

Cook said personal relationships are prohibited between DOC employees and inmates "to protect offenders from possible intimidation and favoritism and to protect staff from potential manipulation."

In a number of Wisconsin cases reviewed by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the inmates told DOC investigators they did not feel victimized, despite the difference in power between the inmate and the staff member.

"Nobody forced me to do anything I didn't want to do," an inmate told police and a DOC investigator in 2017 when he was questioned about a relationship he had with now-former Redgranite Correctional Institution Officer Jessica Wulff.

Wulff and the inmate kissed and wrote several letters and emails to each other before prison officials learned about the interactions.

In another 2017 case, a former food service worker at Stanley Correctional Institution forged a romantic relationship with an inmate who worked in her kitchen. Staff member Jamie Faude in letters to the inmate talked about getting married.

The inmate in interviews with DOC investigators was adamant that he did not feel like a victim.

Charges filed

Other cases were more serious, included sexual contact and led to criminal charges.

Former Kettle Moraine Correctional Institution Officer Katy Moon was charged and ultimately pleaded guilty in May 2018 to misdemeanor charges after being accused of having a sexual relationship with an inmate.

In another case, Ellsworth Correctional Institution nurse Jeremy Deppisch is facing three charges of second-degree sexual assault by correctional staff, among other potential crimes, after he allegedly had sex with a female inmate seeking medical attention earlier this year.

Deppisch also is accused of providing the inmate with medication she did not have a prescription for, according to DOC records.

In cases of credible claims against staff who were not disciplined, the DOC's Cook said those staff members resigned before a department investigation was complete.

"We have zero tolerance for sexual abuse or sexual harassment and have established extremely robust policies and procedures to deter, investigate and address this behavior in line with federal and state law," Cook said.

The DOC provided the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel hundreds of pages of records related to all cases involving substantiated claims except for five because law enforcement is still investigating the allegations.

Among the complaints, 36 investigations found insufficient evidence to determine whether the alleged incident occurred. Another 50 investigations determined that the actions noted in complaints did not occur, and 32 investigations were still being investigated by DOC as of August.