Caring Collectively for People
in Women’s Prisons
We monitor and challenge the abusive conditions inside California women’s prisons.
We fight for the release of women and trans prisoners.
We support women and trans people in their process of re-entering the community.
CCWP Calls for Immediate Public Health Investigation Into Preventable Heatstroke Death at CCWF Women’s Prison
On the early morning of July 6, a woman died from a fully preventable heat stroke at Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla. Despite temperatures topping 113 in Chowchilla on Friday and Saturday and health officials around the state urging the utmost caution with heat related illness, CCWF staff have failed to implement even the most basic heat precautions. “It was heat exhaustion. She got into the shower to cool off and became incoherent, looking off and not responding when roommates were asking her if she was okay. She dropped to the ground and her legs started shaking and wouldn’t stop… I’m hearing she had heart failure at the hospital and passed Saturday July 6th at approximately 2 am,” said an incarcerated woman inside CCWF who wishes to remain anonymous to avoid retaliation. Even after this tragic, preventable death, California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP) is hearing from people inside that they are still being locked into cells reaching a temperature of ninety-five degrees causing widespread headaches, vomiting and other dangerous physical symptoms. Access to cooling spaces as well as cooling items such as ice chips, ice water, electrolytes and cooling towels are simple steps that could be taken to alleviate the situation but officers are not following heat protocols. Almost a year ago the Modesto Bee exposed the severe heat related problems that were occurring at CCWF but nothing has changed.
“CCWP has been receiving alarming calls and emails from incarcerated people throughout the heat wave. “I need help please call up here… it’s 92 degrees in the hallway and 97 degrees inside of our rooms,” said Trancita Ponce, incarcerated at CCWF. “There is hot air blowing inside of our rooms, I have a huge migraine and I feel sick and other girls are throwing up. Not to mention somebody died two days ago from heat exhaustion. Please help us, they’re not doing anything for us.
CCWP is calling for a comprehensive Public Health investigation into the tragic death this past weekend and the immediate implementation of basic life saving heat protocols in all of California’s prisons, including continual access to ice and air conditioned spaces, no lock downs in overheated cells, regular check ups by medical personnel on medically vulnerable people at a minimum. “With increasingly deadly heat waves in California due to climate change, CDCR must not only follow its existing policies but develop and implement new policies that adequately protect the health and lives of incarcerated people,” said Kelly Savage-Rodriguez, a staff coordinator with CCWP who was incarcerated at CCWF for many years. “Staff negligence and preventable death is all too common in CDCR facilities. Amidst the growing threat of climate disaster, including fire and flooding, it is even more urgent that we bring our people home.” “This happens every single year. They need to take accountability. If they did what they said they would do, someone would not have died. This would have been prevented,” said Rosann Leite, incarcerated at CCWF.
The BOP must be held accountable for their 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.
To sign the petition click the button below or use the QR Code provided.
The Sexual Abuse Response and Prevention working group has released a groundbreaking report outlining substantial measures needed to combat sexual abuse within California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). The report is the result of interviews with over 700 incarcerated people and emphasizes the critical need for reform in how sexual assault and harassment cases are handled within the state’s carceral system, particularly within the two state prisons designated for women: the Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) and the California Institution for Women (CIW).
This working group, consisting of community-based organizations – including Sister Warriors Freedom Coalition, the California Coalition for Women Prisoners, Just Detention International, Justice First, Survived & Punished, and VALOR – and staff from CDCR, has spent months conducting research and compiling this report. The group’s investigation focused on protections for whistleblowers, access to trauma-informed support for survivors, and the handling of misconduct reports against staff members, making recommendations based on the root factors contributing to the ongoing sexual abuse within these facilities.
Key Recommendations:
1. Expedited Release for Survivors: Proposing a system to fast-track the release of individuals who have survived sexual abuse by CDCR staff, acknowledging that true safety lies outside of incarceration.
2. Cultural Transformation within CDCR: Recommending an overhaul of staff training on sexual harassment and misconduct, mental health screenings for staff, policy reviews by formerly incarcerated consultants, and promoting community-building efforts among incarcerated people.
3. Enhanced Services for Survivors: Advocating for improved collaboration with Rape Crisis Centers (RCCs), the provision of remote emotional support services, and increasing access and funding for on-site survivor support services.
4. Revamping the Investigation and Reporting Process: Proposing a more confidential, accessible, and independent system for reporting and investigating staff misconduct, to protect reporters from immediate retaliation and ensure appropriate institutional response to abuse.
5. Institutional Accountability: Calling for strengthened whistleblower protections, penalties for body-worn camera deactivation, and external oversight to ensure compliance with recommended changes.
The report stands firm on not increasing CDCR’s budget to implement these changes but rather suggests reallocating existing funds and reducing the prison population as part of a broader strategy to eliminate sexual abuse within the system.
2023 Year End Review
In 2023, CCWP members dreamed boldly about abolishing women’s prisons, and we worked hard to make our dreams of prison abolition real, here in California and around the globe.
Check out our Together We Rise, Together We Heal page, or read the full digital report for a closer look at our amazing accomplishments in 2023.
All of our work is made possible by your donations, monetary and volunteering. Please consider donating to help further our work.
New Report: Maximizing Time, Maximizing Punishment
The Lived Experience of Long-Term Sentences in California Women’s Prisons
The University of California Sentencing Project (UCSP), in collaboration with the California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP) and the UCLA Center for the Study of Women|Streisand Center, is proud to announce the release of its groundbreaking report: “Maximizing Time, Maximizing Punishment: The Lived Experience of Long-Term Sentences in California Women’s Prisons.”
