MI- $100 million ends prisoner sex-abuse suit

Hopefully there will be names -of the guards that did this- added to the state sex offender registry as well.

7-16-2009 Michigan:

The State of Michigan has agreed to pay $100 million to settle a class-action by more than 500 female prisoners who said they were sexually assaulted by prison guards.

The deal, reached Wednesday in Washtenaw County Circuit Court, ends a legal battle that has raged since 1996.

As part of the settlement, the state has agreed to drop its appeal of two earlier verdicts for 18 of the women totaling nearly $24 million. Those women will be paid from Wednesday's settlement.

The Free Press chronicled the alleged abuse in January in a series that focused on Toni Bunton, who was awarded $3.45 million in damages.

"This is a good deal for the state," said Deborah LaBelle, the women's lawyer. "If we tried all of these, the cost to the state would have been a billion dollars."

The payments will be made over five years.

In February 2008, 10 prisoners, including Bunton, were awarded $15.5 million for abuse by guards at Scott Correctional Facility in Wayne County.

In November, a second jury awarded eight women $8.4 million for abuse at Crane Correctional Facility in Coldwater. After interest and attorney fees were estimated, the two verdicts could have cost Michigan taxpayers more than $50 million. Prison officials had repeatedly said taxpayers would not end up paying any money.

• SPECIAL REPORT: Read the full Hostages to Justice series

Sex abuse settlement yields closure

Bunton, who says she was groped and raped repeatedly by prison guards at Scott Correctional Facility in the 1990s, stood in a courtroom Wednesday afternoon and signed a $100-million settlement agreement on behalf of more than 500 prisoners, ending a class-action against the state Department of Corrections.

Bunton, whose sentence was commuted almost 10 months ago, smiled broadly and pumped her fist.

"I think it's very fair, yes," Bunton told the court.

Judge Timothy Connors gave preliminary approval of the deal in the Washtenaw County Courthouse. "I think it is in the best interest of everyone in this state to have this resolved," Connors said from the bench.


Connors has been involved in the case for 13 years. "I think it is an excellent settlement," Connors said. "It is fair. I'm glad it is finally put to rest."

The state agreed to six payments over five years. The first is due Oct. 15.

"I'm proud of the state recognizing the harm and making a strong statement," said Deborah LaBelle, an Ann Arbor civil rights lawyer who led a team that sued on behalf of the women. "This will resolve everything."

LaBelle said no state has ever awarded female prisoners this much money. "Never," she said. Her statement could not be immediately verified.

The governor's office referred questions to Russ Marlan, a spokesman for the Department of Corrections. He noted that the settlement includes language describing the agreement as "not an admission of guilt but a compromise."

He said: "Based on the advice and recommendation of the attorney general, the governor has authorized and the Department of Corrections has agreed to a global settlement to resolve pending litigation against the department regarding female inmates' claims of sexual assault and abuse by male corrections staff."

No specific source for the money has been identified, but it obviously will impact funds available for other purposes, Marlan said.

The settlement directs how the money will be divided and opens up the door for many more women to take part. Ten thousand women who have been released from prison since 1993 and all the women who are currently in prison could be eligible to file a claim if they suffered an injury. LaBelle's office agreed to send notifications to all of these women and place notices in several newspapers, including the Free Press.

"Many of the women are in need of treatment," LaBelle said. "The funds will help them get whole and become good citizens."

As part of the deal, prisoners can use the money to bring in private therapists.

More than 500 women claim they were abused by guards in the 1990s in Michigan prisons as officials ignored or dismissed warnings by human rights groups that male guards were preying on female inmates. The women joined a class-action filed in 1996. After years of delays and legal maneuvering, the cases were being heard in small batches in front of Connors.

In early 2008, the first 10 female prisoners in the class action, including Bunton, were awarded $15.5 million in damages for sexual abuse by guards in the 1990s at Scott Correctional Facility in Wayne County. Bunton said she was raped eight times by prison guards between 1993 and 1996.

She was convicted in 1991 of second-degree murder, armed robbery and assault and sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison for being the getaway driver in a drug deal that went bad.

Last November, a second jury awarded eight women $8.4 million for abuse suffered at Crane Correctional Facility in Coldwater.

After interest and attorney fees are estimated, the two verdicts alone could have cost taxpayers more than $50 million.

Prison officials repeatedly claimed that the first two verdicts would be reversed and taxpayers would end up not paying any money. But in January, the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled unanimously in favor of the 10 female prisoners at Scott. The three-member appeals court said that various issues and arguments raised on appeal were "disingenuous," "fundamentally flawed" and "muddled."

The appellate court found there was "sufficient evidence for the jury" to find there was a hostile environment at Scott, noting that that it was shown at trial that there were nearly 200 sexual misconduct allegations at Scott from 1991 to 1999. Further, from 1994 to 1997, roughly 30% of the male staff at Scott were alleged to have taken part in sexual assaults.

The 10 lawyers who have represented the women were awarded just over $28 million from the settlement. The rest will be split up by the women.

As part of the settlement, the women who won the 18 verdicts from the first two trials have agreed to take less money, but their award will be based on the verdicts.

For instance, Bunton was awarded $3.45 million from a jury. With interest, the award was expected to double. But in the settlement, she has agreed to accept 67% of the $3.45-million award. In essence, she and the others accepted the certainty of an award now and avoided the risks of a prolonged appeal.

"I think we are all happy this is coming to closure," Bunton said. "This agreement sends a message that they care about the human rights of women prisoners." ..Source.. by JEFF SEIDEL • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER