Benjamin Montgomery, a former correctional officer at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta pleaded guilty today to a two-count information charging him with civil rights crimes for assaulting an inmate and for subsequently writing a false report about the incident.

The Justice Department today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Lake County, Ind., and the Lake County Sheriff to resolve its complaint concerning conditions of confinement at the Lake County Jail (LCJ). LCJ is located in Crown Point, Ind., and houses approximately 1,050 adult male and female inmates.

A former correctional officer from Cohoes, N.Y., was convicted following a jury trial in Albany, N.Y., of violating the civil rights of an inmate while working at the Rensselaer County Correctional Facility, and making false statements to the FBI regarding the incident.

A Bexar County, Texas, corrections officer was charged today in a two-count federal indictment with violating the civil rights of two detainees.

Joseph Taunton, 31, from Jonesville, La., a former corrections officer at the LaSalle Parish Detention Center in Jena, La., pleaded guilty in federal court for engaging in a sexual act with a federal detainee.

A former Bexar County Sherriff’s Office Deputy was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia to 27 months in prison for depriving a man of his constitutional right to be free from excessive force and for obstructing justice.

South Florida Reception Center (SFRC) officers Alexander McQueen, 30; Guruba Griffin 31; Scott Butler, 32; and Steven Dawkins, 30, were indicted on charges of conspiring to violate the civil rights of inmates at SFRC. McQueen and Dawkins are also charged with obstruction of justice.

"Let me say at the outset how honored I am to be placed among the many distinguished past recipients of this award – and I’m humbled to have my name connected with the extraordinary woman in whose honor this award is given," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.

Raymond Quintero, 33, pleaded guilty to willfully depriving a detainee of his constitutional right to be free from excessive force amounting to punishment.

A federal jury in Miami convicted South Florida Reception Center (SFRC) Corrections Officers Alexander McQueen, 30, and Steven Dawkins, 30, of offenses related to the violation of civil rights of inmates at SFRC.

The United States has sued Rodney Chestnut and Nafeesah Hines to bar them from promoting an alleged tax fraud scheme.

The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit today against the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections alleging that it violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act by failing to retroactively promote a U.S. Army Reservist based on his successful performance on a make-up promotional examination after he returned from a military deployment.

The Justice Department announced today that Scottie T. Glenn, 28, a former corrections officer of the Alabama Department of Corrections, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Montgomery, Ala., to one count of violating the civil rights of a former inmate and to one count of conspiring with other corrections officers to cover up the incident.

The Justice Department announced today that it is opening civil investigations into two state correctional institutions (SCI) in Western Pennsylvania.

Two corrections officers were sentenced to prison today for civil rights and obstruction charges stemming from prisoner abuse that took place at the South Florida Reception Center (SFRC), a state prison in Doral, Fla.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has entered into a settlement that, if approved by the court, will resolve the department’s allegations that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Department of Correction violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by discriminating against female applicants for entry-level correction officer and correction program officer positions at the Massachusetts Department of Correction.

The Department of Justice announced today the filing of a consent decree with the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections (LDPSC) that resolves allegations of sexual harassment of an office administrator in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (Title VII).

Florida Department of Corrections (FDOC) officer Guruba Griffin, 32, was sentenced by District Judge Cecilia Altonaga to serve one year in prison, followed by one year of supervised release.

The department’s complaint, filed today along with the consent decree, alleges that Susan Peterson, a female correctional officer at the Arizona State Prison Complex in Tucson, Ariz., was regularly subjected to verbal and physical sexual harassment by several of her male supervisors and coworkers from early 2005 through November 2008.

The Justice Department announced today that a federal grand jury has charged Michael Smith, 37, Matthew Davidson, 43, and Joseph Sanders, 31 – former corrections officers of the Alabama Department of Corrections – in a 17-count indictment.

Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department announced today its findings that the state of Mississippi violated the constitutional rights of youth detained at the Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility.

A federal grand jury in Albuquerque indicted Sylvester Bruce, 44, a former corrections officer with Navajo Nation’s Shiprock, N.M., Detention Center, on charges related to the sexual abuse of an inmate during the summer and fall of 2010.

Former District of Columbia Department of Corrections Officer Victor Bell, 25, pleaded guilty today to a criminal civil rights charge for assaulting an inmate in the District of Columbia Central Detention Facility (D.C. jail).

The Department of Justice announced that North Carolina Department of Correction’s Division of Community Corrections Probation Officer Willie James Steele Jr., 47, was indicted yesterday on civil rights charges for violating the constitutional rights of a female probationer that he was supervising by coercing her into sexual acts on two separate occasions.

Willie Redden, 24, of Albany, Ga., a former member of the Correctional Emergency Response Team (CERT) at Macon State Prison in Oglethorpe, Ga., pleaded guilty today to conspiring with other correctional officers to violate the civil rights of inmates in 2010.

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement in its lawsuit against the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PDOC).

Sylvester Bruce, 44, a former corrections officer with Navajo Nation’s Shiprock Detention Center (SDC) in Shiprock, N.M., pleaded guilty today in federal court on charges related to the sexual abuse of an inmate during the summer and fall of 2010. Specifically, Bruce pleaded guilty to one count of violating the civil rights of the victim when he touched her breasts against her will. Bruce also pleaded guilty to making material false statements to the FBI when he denied taking pictures of inmates inside the cells of the SDC.

"For too long, our jails and prisons have been thought of as sealed institutions, where all problems – and all dangers – are contained. But that is clearly not the case. Health care is a powerful example of how issues that are unresolved – and, too often, exacerbated – in the corrections setting can lead to public health and public safety risks," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Leary.

Darren Douglass-Griffin, 35, a former member of the Correctional Emergency Response Team (CERT) at Macon State Prison (MSP) in Oglethorpe, Ga., pleaded guilty to a two-count bill of information charging him with conspiracy to violate the civil rights of inmates and falsification of records in a federal investigation, the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia announced today.

Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department today released its letter of findings determining that the Topeka Correctional Facility (TCF), an all-female facility in Topeka, Kan., under the jurisdiction of the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC), fails to protect women prisoners from harm due to sexual abuse and misconduct from correctional staff and other prisoners in violation of their constitutional rights. The Justice Department delivered a letter detailing the findings to Governor Samuel D. Brownback and Secretary of the KDOC Ray Roberts.

Demetrio Juan Gonzales, 40, a former corrections officer at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty today to one count of violating the civil rights of an individual in his custody when he struck and choked the victim in the shower room/dress out area of MDC.

Sylvester Bruce, 45, a former corrections officer with Navajo Nation’s Shiprock Detention Center (SDC) in Shiprock, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court on charges related to the sexual abuse of an inmate during the summer and fall of 2010. In July 2012, Bruce pleaded guilty to one count of violating the victim’s civil rights when he touched her breasts against her will. Bruce also pleaded guilty to making material false statements to the FBI when he denied taking pictures of inmates inside the cells of the SDC.

Kevin L. Groom Sr, 45, a correctional officer with the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge James J. Brady for the Middle District of Louisiana for his role in covering up an incident in which correctional officers used excessive force against an inmate. Groom admitted filing a false report and subsequently providing false information to the FBI about the incident. Investigation of the incident is ongoing.

Anthony McIntosh, a former correctional officer at the Prince George’s County Detention Center, in Upper Marlboro, Md., today pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice for providing false information about the circumstances surrounding the in-custody death of Ronnie White on June 29, 2008.

Demetrio Juan Gonzales, 40, a former corrections officer at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court to 33 months in prison followed by three years of supervised released for violating the civil rights of an individual in his custody when he struck and choked the victim in the shower room/dress out area of MDC.

Today, Matthew E. Davidson, a former corrections officer of the Alabama Department of Corrections, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Montgomery, Ala., to two counts of violating the civil rights of a former inmate at Ventress Correctional Facility in Clayton, Ala., and to one count of conspiring with other corrections officers to obstruct justice by covering up the incident.

A federal court has permanently barred Nafeesah H. Hines and Rodney N. Chestnut from promoting an alleged tax fraud scheme, as well as preparing tax returns for anyone other than themselves.

Ryan Lohr, 26, a former correctional officer at the Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., pleaded guilty today to conspiring to obstruct justice and destroy evidence from a March 9, 2008, assault of an inmate by RCI officers.

Matthew Pendley, 26, a former corrections officer at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty today to one count of obstructing justice when he lied to law enforcement during their investigation of the assault on an inmate at the hands of another corrections officer.

Dustin Norris, a former correctional officer at the Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., pleaded guilty to conspiring with other RCI officers to assault an inmate at the state prison on March 9, 2008.

Two separate indictments charging a total of nine current or former officers at Roxbury Correctional Institution were unsealed today, in relation to two assaults of an inmate, and subsequent obstruction of justice.

Philip Mayo, a former correctional officer at the Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., pleaded guilty to conspiring with other RCI officers to assault an inmate at the state prison during the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. (midnight) shift on March 8-9, 2008.

A third indictment, this time charging two former officers at Roxbury Correctional Institution, was returned today, in relation to assaults of an inmate, identified as K.D., and subsequent obstruction of justice.

A federal jury late yesterday convicted Kevin Casaus, 25, a former corrections officer at the Bernalillo County, N.M., Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Albuquerque, N.M., on obstruction of justice and falsification of records charges.

A 29-count indictment was unsealed today in Montgomery, Ala., charging Bryant Thompson, an Alabama corrections officer, and Quincy Walton, a former Alabama corrections officer, with federal tax crimes.

Kenny McLaughlin, 35, a corrections officer at the Stone County Regional Facility in Stone County, Miss., pleaded guilty today in federal court to ordering the beating of an inmate at the detention facility.

Walter Scott Steele, a former correctional officer at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI), and Lanny Harris, a former correction sergeant at RCI in Hagerstown, Md., pleaded guilty today in relation to assaults against an inmate on March 9, 2008.

The Department of Justice and the Council of State Governments (CSG) highlight 17 states that have cut corrections costs while reducing recidivism and improving public safety. With funding from the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), staff from the CSG Justice Center – in partnership with the Pew Center on the States – worked with lawmakers, policymakers, and a wide range of justice system professionals and stakeholders from each state to identify crime and corrections trends and formulate strategies that would save money and improve safety.

The Department of Justice today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in Las Vegas has indicted a former North Las Vegas corrections officer on federal civil rights and obstruction of justice charges.

A former correctional officer at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., yesterday pleaded guilty to assaulting an inmate and conspiring with other officers to cover up that assault.