DOJ Launches Investigation into Colorado Prisons Over Alleged Civil Rights Violations

The U.S. Department of Justice has announced it is opening a broad investigation into the Colorado Department of Corrections, currently home to a convicted election denier that President Trump has been trying to free.The federal probe seeks to determine if state prisons and juvenile facilities are violating the constitutional rights of inmates through excessive force, inadequate medical care, and controversial housing policies for transgender offenders.In a letter to Governor Jared Polis, the DOJ said the investigation will examine “policies and practices” within the state’s correctional system. The inquiry focuses on whether adult inmates in 21 facilities are receiving adequate medical care and living in safe, sanitary conditions. Simultaneously, investigators will assess whether the state protects youth in 12 detention centers from excessive force and provides them with adequate nutrition.“The Constitution protects every American, whether they are a young person confined in a juvenile facility or an elderly person confined to a prison,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in a statement. “We are committed to upholding our federal civil rights laws so that no one is subject to unconstitutional mistreatment when held in state custody.”One Colorado prison — the La Vista Correctional Facility, a medium-security state prison — holds Tina Peters, a former Mesa County Clerk. A state judge last year sentenced Peters to nine years in prison after she was found guilty of several felonies stemming from her efforts to help an unauthorized person gain access to the county’s Dominion voting machines in 2021.Her attorney has filed papers saying Peters is not safe in the state prison, seeking to get her moved to a federal facility. That claim has been seen as a push to ultimately free Peters and win a pardon from President Trump. Her lawyer says Peters has been attacked by other inmates, but her request to transfer has been denied six times.Mr. Trump does not have pardon power over state-level charges, but he has threatened to retaliate against the state of Colorado if Peters is not released. The president asked Mr. Polis, a Democrat, to transfer Peters to federal custody, but he refused. In announcing its probe, the DOJ — which did not mention Peters — said the investigation involves the state’s policies on housing transgender inmates. The DOJ indicated it will investigate whether the Department of Corrections “violates prisoners’ and detainees’ right to free exercise of religion by housing biological males in units designated for females.”The investigation comes amidst heightened scrutiny of Colorado’s juvenile facilities. Recent reporting by The Denver Post revealed allegations from parents that youth offenders were losing significant weight due to a lack of food, with one 22-year-old reportedly hospitalized for renal failure caused by malnourishment. Internal reports have also cited allegations of excessive force, drug infiltration, and sexual misconduct by staff in youth centers.The DOJ said that the investigation is authorized under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. If federal investigators identify constitutional violations, the department intends to inform the state and attempt to remedy the issues, potentially avoiding contested litigation through “good faith efforts.”

DOJ Launches Investigation into Colorado Prisons Over Alleged Civil Rights Violations

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