Whitney Bryen

In a letter to Gov. Little, @now4idaho.bsky.social condemned the state’s “shameful” failure to protect women from sexual abuse by prison staff & called for an independent investigation & "immediate" action - prompted by @investigatewest.bsky.social reporting. www.investigatewest.org/idaho-leader...

Whew. That's a lot. We know. We're here to help you make sense of it and understand what's being done to fix it. Send questions. Or tips. Or your own experience. And stay tuned for updates that we'll post at investigatewest.org/guarded-by-p... Thanks for reading! /end

One woman’s action spurs outcry on Idaho prison sex abuse Inspired by Andrea Weiskircher, scores of women revealed sexual abuse by Idaho prison staff. Most of their cases were buried.

Lastly (for now) is Andrea's story. In story 6, we dive into the life of one woman who is fighting the system's treatment of women like her and the movement she ignited while she was behind bars. investigatewest.org/from-one-voi... 12/

How Idaho’s prison sex abuse law protects predatory guards When guards are charged, plea deals offer leniency

Story 5: In rare instances when a guard is charged with sexually assaulting an incarcerated woman, plea deals offer leniency. Part of the problem, according to the director of the Project on Addressing Prison Rape, is that Idaho's law is "too narrow." investigatewest.org/idaho-law-ch... 12/

Listen as Idaho State Police detectives interview Sgt. Brian Klingensmith about former inmate’s allegation that he raped her. The 9-minute, unedited audio of the interview in Story 4 was obtained by InvestigateWest through a public records request. investigatewest.org/case-closed-... 11/

In Idaho prisons, abuse by guards is rarely investigated Audio recordings and records obtained by InvestigateWest reveal sloppy investigations, omitted evidence and questions about whether cases were properly pursued

Most of the abuse we heard about wasn't criminally investigated. But when it was, we found that police sometimes dismissed evidence, ignored leads and treated survivors as suspects, allowing abusers to escape justice. investigatewest.org/case-closed-... 10/

In Idaho women’s prisons, guards get away with sex abuse A yearlong investigation finds rampant sexual abuse by guards, systemic cover-ups, and punishment for victims

Story 3 examine's one woman's experience. Through her, we learned how this abuse occurs, the failures of the prison system to prevent and stop it, and the retaliation victims face when they chose to speak up. investigatewest.org/in-idaho-wom... 9/

We found 37 prison workers accused in the last decade of sexual misconduct toward incarcerated women. Of those, 18 resigned. 8 were fired. 3 were criminally charged. And 1 received a prison sentence for abuse, which was dismissed after he completed alternative sentencing. 8/

Staff sex abuse in Idaho women’s prisons largely unchecked InvestigateWest reporting exposes sexual abuse by guards, retaliation against victims and a system that fails to track the scope of the problem

If you only have time for one story, I'd suggest story 2. It lays out the main findings of our yearlong investigation. For instance, since 2020, there have been at least 59 documented allegations of staff sexually abusing imprisoned women. investigatewest.org/staff-sexual... 7/

The Ada County Sheriff’s Office heavily redacted a report containing the allegations. It claimed the omitted information “would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” and that it was "unclear" how info about a state worker at a taxpayer-funded prison served the public interest. 6/

An Idaho prison guard preyed on women. The system hid it This is the first installment in a new InvestigateWest series called “Guarded by Predators,” exposing rape and abuse by Idaho’s prison guards and the system that shields them

Our first story looks at one guard who was convicted of raping an inmate, and the only one who received a prison sentence for his crime. His victim says it isn't a victory but an “infuriating” example of why sexual abuse by guards is so common. investigatewest.org/the-idaho-pr... 5/

The Idaho prison system withheld reports of officer sexual misconduct and refused to discuss disciplinary action. It could not provide a count of staff sexual misconduct allegations making our reporting the most thorough accounting of alleged sexual abuse in Idaho women’s prisons to date. 4/

We began reporting this in 2024 after hearing from several incarcerated women who said they’d been sexually abused by guards. We interviewed more than 36 current or former inmates and made more than 100 public records requests from Idaho agencies. 3/

It turns out, that was a lot of information to throw at you in a short amount of time. So, here is a summary of each story with links to help you catch up - a guide, if you will, to our coverage. I'll also include a few of the main points we uncovered to make sure you don't miss them. Buckle up. 2/

In the state that incarcerates women at the nation's highest rate, @wilsonc.bsky.social and I uncovered rampant sexual abuse by Idaho women's prison guards. After a year of reporting, we published 6 stories examining the system that failed to protect them. 🧵 1/

Grantees @wbryen.bsky.social & @wilsonc.bsky.social investigated sexual assault reports made by 25 women against more than 40 prison guards and revealed how the Idaho Department of Corrections systematically tolerates the sexual abuse of inmates. @investigatewest.bsky.social

👉 bit.ly/47W9JAz

Staff sex abuse in Idaho women’s prisons largely unchecked InvestigateWest reporting exposes sexual abuse by guards, retaliation against victims and a system that fails to track the scope of the problem

"In Idaho prisons, more than two dozen women say guards prey on them with little fear of consequences — and those who speak up are often punished."

The U.S. is a leader in women's incarceration, and behind bars, women are anything but safe. 🧵

Guarded by Predators A new series by InvestigateWest exposing rape and abuse by Idaho’s prison guards and the system that shields them.

.@wilsonc.bsky.social and I spent a year investigating why sexual abuse by Idaho women's prison guards is so common. We found that the Idaho prison system, police and the courts failed to protect incarcerated women. You can read more stories like this one at www.investigatewest.org/guarded-by-p...

An Idaho prison guard preyed on women. The system hid it This is the first installment in a new InvestigateWest series called “Guarded by Predators,” exposing rape and abuse by Idaho’s prison guards and the system that shields them

Instead, Quiroz completed a treatment program in state custody. His prison sentence was dismissed and he was placed on probation. His victim called the result an "infuriating" example of why sexual abuse by Idaho guards is so common. Here's the full story. www.investigatewest.org/the-idaho-pr...

Most sexual abuse allegations against women's prison staff are never referred to law enforcement, and the ones that are rarely result in criminal charges. Quiroz is the only women's prison guard in the last 10 years to receive a prison sentence for raping an inmate. And he never served that time.

While police were investigating, they discovered that just weeks before Quiroz raped her, he used his access to prison records to locate and contact a second woman who had recently been released from prison for a sexual encounter. Ada County prosecutors charged Quiroz with felony rape.

🧵 Idaho prison guard Ricardo Quiroz was transporting a woman under his supervision from the hospital where she had a medical procedure back to prison when, she says, he raped her in the back of the van. For 2 years, she was too scared to report what happened. In 2020, she finally did...