At Oregon鈥檚 only women鈥檚 prison, female inmates have seen large black paper cutouts of rats along a hallway鈥檚 walls and heard a corrections officer call women 鈥渋nformants鈥� and 鈥渞ats鈥� for speaking to investigators, according to a new report.
The intimidation follows a state-ordered outside assessment of conditions at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility that was released last year. The women鈥檚 prison is a 508,000-square-foot facility, located on 108 acres in Wilsonville, has more than 800 female inmates, including some who鈥檝e complained about harassment and sexual abuse.
Some of their latest complaints, including the intimidation, are included in a by the Oregon Justice Resource Center, a Portland-based nonprofit advocacy group.
The publication is the latest documenting conditions at Coffee Creek after the last year by Women鈥檚 Justice Institute in Chicago and the Center for Effective Public Policy in Maryland described harsh conditions at Coffee Creek, including a culture of retaliation that discourages staff and inmates from reporting wrongdoing. In response to that report, Gov. Tina Kotek said she was 鈥渘ot happy鈥� with the prison management and in August formed an that is meeting behind closed doors to formulate recommendations. In November, the Oregon Department of Corrections also announced plans for at the prison, like providing sports bras and more activities, to boost the quality of life of prisoners.
But this latest report 鈥� and advocates 鈥� say the the state鈥檚 response has been inadequate and has fallen far short of what鈥檚 needed to address the problem. The report documents accounts of male correctional officers standing uncomfortably close to showering women, agency staff complaining about reforms and inmates served spoiled food.
鈥淭hat silence is the thing that鈥檚 still most stunning, because if this was happening in any other sector of society, and people were being treated this way, most people would be horrified,鈥� Bobbin Singh, the center鈥檚 executive director, said in an interview with the Capital Chronicle. 鈥淎nd there鈥檇 be a deep investigation into what鈥檚 going on.鈥�
Among the allegations in the report, based on inmate accounts:
- At least two officers repeatedly stand near the shower stalls and make eye contact with women as they shower or stand up after using the bathroom.
- A corrections officer said pictures of rats would not be taken down because inmates who talked to outside assessors were 鈥渢elling on us.鈥�
- Poor living conditions, including spoiled food and water leaks from a roof.
Advocates said the state has had plenty of time to correct the situation.
The state鈥檚 report came out more than 200 days ago, a point advocates hammered home with the release of their findings.
鈥淕overnor Kotek has not yet apologized to those who have been and are currently incarcerated at CCCF,鈥� said Julia Yoshimoto, director of the Oregon Justice Resource Center鈥檚 Women鈥檚 Justice Project. 鈥淕overnor Kotek, at minimum, must apologize for how people have been treated and are still being treated at CCCF, and, importantly, make the commitment that responding to the (state鈥檚 report) will be a priority for her administration in the 2025 legislative session.鈥�
鈥楴o comment鈥� from Kotek鈥檚 office
The governor鈥檚 office did not respond to the issues raised by the report or say what actions Kotek has ordered or has planned to fix the situation at Coffee Creek which has dragged on for months.
Elisabeth Shepard, a spokesperson for Kotek, said in an email that the advocacy group brings an 鈥渋mportant voice鈥� to the governor鈥檚 Advisory Panel on Gender Responsive Practices in Corrections, which is coming up with recommended fixes at Coffee Creek.
But Shepard declined to answer questions about whether any agency managers have been fired or sanctioned or whether Kotek plans to apologize to inmates who have been harmed as the center wants.
鈥淣o comment,鈥� Shepard texted a Capital Chronicle reporter after receiving an email with questions.
Kotek鈥檚 communications director, An Do, and Mia Ruston, an aide for corrections issues in the governor鈥檚 office, also didn鈥檛 answer questions from the Capital Chronicle.
And Amber Campbell, a spokesperson for the corrections agency, also did not answer detailed questions about the report. The agency will have 鈥渕ore specific information鈥� to share about its work at Coffee Creek in May, when the agency is due to send an update to the governor鈥檚 office, Campbell said.
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