On April 15, 2024 the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Colette Peters, ordered the immediate shut down of FCI Dublin women’s prison.  This order came ten days after Judge Gonzalez Rogers appointed Special Master Wendy Still to oversee the facility in light of rampant staff abuse, retaliation and medical neglect which is the subject of our class action lawsuit filed in August 2023. The abrupt closure of FCI Dublin was a clear effort by Director Peters and the BOP to evade oversight and accountability.  

After the shut down order, chaos unfolded inside the facility, further traumatizing incarcerated people who had already been subjected to immense harm by the BOP.  Despite court orders requiring BOP to take certain measures prior to transfers, the BOP proceeded to pack hundreds of people into buses and ship them across the country to other facilities without regard for their health, their eligibility for release, or their proximity to their loved ones.

The Dublin Prison Solidarity Coalition, which has been advocating on behalf of the women, trans and non-binary people incarcerated at Dublin, has heard countless horror stories about the transfer process. Nearly six hundred people were haphazardly evacuated to prisons as far away as Minnesota, Alabama, Texas and Florida––many to high rise administrative detention facilities designed for pre-trial custody, or higher security prisons with greater restrictions. People were forced to throw away most of their possessions, including family photographs, letters, and journals, and commissary items that come at high prices, particularly for those reliant on BOP wages, typically less than $10 per month. 

Incarcerated people described enduring cold, hunger,  thirst, and suffered cuts and bruises from having their hands and legs shackled for hours or days at a time, including to eat and to use the bathroom. Others report being denied access to medications, menstrual products, or bathrooms during transport, and urinating, defecating, and bleeding on their clothing.  Many described abusive, retaliatory remarks by transport guards in the buses and guards at their new prison locations, calling them snitches and accusing them of bringing the situation upon themselves. 

The BOP must be held accountable for these egregious violations of incarcerated people’s basic human rights.  The BOP must be held accountable for retaliating against people who spoke out by transferring them away from their children and family members. The BOP must be held accountable for trying to hide from oversight and trying to isolate people from their community support. 

We call on President Biden, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco to hold Director Colette Peters and BOP leadership accountable. We demand that they:

• Grant executive clemency for survivors of Dublin staff sexual abuse.
• Immediately release Dublin survivors, including through compassionate release and community placements. 
• Safeguard immigrant survivors from deportation, including through deferred action, prosecutorial discretion, and U-visa certifications.
• Launch a comprehensive investigation into the abrupt shutdown of FCI Dublin and the irresponsible, retaliatory rushed transfers.
• Create a task force to oversee Dublin transfers to ensure safety from abuse and retaliation, continued contact with their loved ones and legal counsel, programming in line with the First Step Act and review of eligibility for release.
• Create an administrative body to efficiently process claims and compensate people transferred from Dublin for their lost and discarded possessions. 
• Permanently close the former FCI Dublin prison, and dedicate the property to housing or a community center for women and trans people, approved by the survivors of Dublin.
• Provide immediate access to medical care for survivors harmed during the transport to other facilities.
• Terminate Director Peters who authorized the disastrous transfer plan and ensure outside oversight to designate her replacement 

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