DOJ investigating sexual abuse at 2 California women's prisons

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday that it has opened an investigation into allegations that correctional officers systematically sexually abused incarcerated women at two state-run California prisons, drawing immediate praise from state lawmakers.

"No person, no matter what they did to be sentenced to prison, should be forced to endure the crime of rape or sexual assault by prison staff," state Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) and Vice Chair Assembly Majority Leader Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) said in a joint statement. 

Authorities found "significant justification" to open an investigation into the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla and the California Institution for Women in Chino, the DOJ said in a news release. Both are run by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

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