Fired prison worker sues after alleged sex assault by co-worker

A former Kansas prison worker says in a lawsuit that the state Department of Corrections fired her without a valid reason after she reported sexual abuse by a co-worker.

An after-work outing with a male co-worker at the Topeka Correctional Facility in March 2016 ended with an incident of “nonconsensual sexual contact,” the lawsuit alleges. The complaint was filed in federal district court earlier this week.

A spokesman for the Kansas Department of Corrections would not comment. State agencies typically do not comment on ongoing litigation.

According to the lawsuit, the corrections officer told her supervisor about the incident two days later, sought time off and asked for confidentiality. She began to suffer from depression.

Later that March, the officer had a crying spell “in relation to her depression and the nonconsensual sexual action of her co-worker.” She was informed she had to get help or quit her job, the lawsuit says.

She was then taken to Valeo Behavioral Health, where she remained for several days.

She returned to work in late March 2016 and had no additional problems, the lawsuit says. The officer was fired in early April. The lawsuit says the agency cited attendance issues, though she says in the suit she was not given a valid reason.

“After reporting the sexual abuse and taking time off from work related to it, Plaintiff experienced discrimination and retaliatory treatment in that she was subject to increased scrutiny by her superiors,” the lawsuit reads.

The former worker is asking for her job back and for lost wages.

The lawsuit comes at a time of heightened attention to the KDOC, which is dealing with a staff shortage at El Dorado Correctional Facility. Last week, a number of prisoners there refused to return to their cell houses for several hours.

Issues of sexual misconduct are also particularly sensitive for the Topeka Correctional Facility, which houses women. In 2012, the U.S. Department of Justice found that prisoners were subjected to a pattern or practice of sexual abuse.

The Justice Department in 2015 entered into a settlement agreement with Kansas that says the state must mandate “zero tolerance toward all forms of sexual abuse and sexual harassment,” according to the Justice Department’s announcement at the time.

The former worker’s lawsuit refers to the prison’s past problems.

“The Topeka Correctional Facility has had events occur in the past, which reflect that it operates an environment conducive to sexual abuse,” the lawsuit says.

This story was originally published July 5, 2017 at 4:35 PM with the headline "Fired prison worker sues after alleged sex assault by co-worker."