Rape and Sexual Misconduct in the Prison System: Analyzing America's Most "Open" Secret

"Jane," a female inmate in her early twenties, has a story not dissimilar to that of countless inmates within the American prison system. Serving time for petty larceny and prostitution at the Woman's House of Detention in New York City, she experienced the gross atrocities of life in a correctional facility. She describes the guards in her prison as relentless sexual abusers, wielding the powerful weapon of their authoritative positions to take advantage of any inmate they desired. The guards, male and female alike, forced sexual relationships upon the female inmates and offered special privileges for inmates in return for coerced sexual favors.