A female former inmate who says she was sexually victimized by her transgender cellmate has sued the Washington state prison system, arguing that her rights were violated when she was forced to share a cell with a biological male.
Mozzy Clark said she was repeatedly harassed, touched and fondled by Christopher Scott Williams, 35, described as a “convicted sexual predator” who was assigned to Clark’s cell at the Washington Corrections Center for Women after transferring from the men’s prison.
Ms. Clark, who has since been released, accused the Washington Department of Corrections of violating her constitutional rights, including the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.”
“My experience at WCCW was a nightmare,” Ms. Clark said in a Monday statement. “I lived in constant fear, knowing that those who were supposed to protect me not only ignored my pleas for help but enabled my abuser. This cannot continue to happen to others.”
The lawsuit comes with Democrat-led states like Washington facing growing pushback for allowing male-born prisoners to be housed in women’s prisons based on gender identity, a situation that critics warn poses safety risks to female inmates.
The complaint filed Friday in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington said that Williams assaulted a corrections officer in the men’s prison, after which the inmate “claimed to identify as a woman, and was transferred to WCCW as a result.”
A six-foot-four “fully intact biological male” who continues to use the name assigned at birth, Williams was assigned to Ms. Clark’s cell in early 2022.
“During the time Ms. Clark was locked in a cage with this man, he continually talked to her in a sexually explicit manner, touched his genitals luridly in front of her, threatened Plaintiff with sexual violence, and when prison officials did nothing about this behavior, went on to sexually assault her multiple times,” the lawsuit said.
At night, Williams began fondling Ms. Clark in her sleep, putting his hands under her blanket and touching her legs and breasts. One night she woke up to find Williams rubbing her genitals under her blanket.
Prison officers responded by removing “a large bag of sex toys that Williams had in the cell,” but told Ms. Clark that “if she complained, it would be considered a hate crime and actively discouraged her from filing any complaints.”
Williams was finally removed from the cell after Ms. Clark filed a Prison Rape Elimination Act complaint but continues to be housed in the women’s prison.
Williams “continued to harass and intimidate Ms. Clark by following her around in the yard and staring at her in a menacing manner,” the lawsuit said.
“Prison officials knowingly placed my client in harm’s way, disregarding her safety and basic human rights,” said Los Angeles attorney David Pivtorak, who represents Ms. Clark.
“This lawsuit seeks to hold the Department of Corrections accountable for policies that enabled the victimization of women in their custody,” the attorney said.
Department spokesperson Rachel Ericson said that “DOC does not comment on pending litigation, but the agency takes all allegations of assault seriously. DOC follows the Prison Rape Elimination Act standards for response to reported sexual harassment and sexual assault.”
The department, which has allowed inmates to make housing requests based on gender identity since at least 2020, now has about 284 transgender prisoners in its 11 prisons. About 10 of those are biological males living in “gender-affirming housing” in the women’s prison.
“Each situation is considered on a case-by-case basis, with a focus on safety both for the incarcerated individual and those who are housed at the facility,” Ms. Ericson said in an email.
The Washington prison system, though, is facing another Eighth Amendment complaint from a male-to-female transgender inmate, making the opposite complaint.
Transgender inmate Amber Kim sued earlier this month after being returned to the men’s facility for having “consensual sexual contact” with a female prisoner at the WCCW, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington.
The ACLU has accused the department of violating the Eighth Amendment by exposing the inmate to “an imminent danger of violence, sexual assault, and harassment” in the men’s prison.
“The decision to transfer Ms. Kim to a men’s prison is cruel and violates the Washington Constitution,” said ACLU staff attorney Adrien Leavitt in a Dec. 17 press release. “Transphobia on the part of the DOC hurts safety in state prisons and serves no legitimate purpose.”
Also embroiled in litigation on the transgender-inmate issue is California, which has been sued by the Women’s Liberation Front on behalf of six female inmates challenging the 2020 state law requiring prisons to house inmates based on gender identity.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.