Inmates and officers say N.J. failed to stop sex abuse behind bars

They once wore tan prison uniforms, some convicted of terrible crimes, but now they sat in civilian clothes at microphones in front of New Jersey state lawmakers.

They all had a dark story to tell.

I was sexually abused by a corrections officer. I saw countless women raped while serving my time. I spoke up, I complained, I reported it.

Former inmates testified at a legislative hearing Thursday on conditions at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women, the only women's prison in the state. Eight staff members there have been criminally charged over sex abuse claims in the last 18 months. Two pleaded guilty to lesser charges and are serving prison sentences.

There were many more, the women testified, telling the state Senate committee a "culture of silence" permeates the prison.

Cynthia Cupe, who served much of her sentence for murder at the Union Township facility, said she was "fondled" by a corrections officer in 2014 and witnessed countless others suffer sexual abuse.

"What shocked me the most was this particular officer had been known for years of improperly touching women, yet he was allowed to stay in his position," she said.

In the audience sat other former inmates, experts on sexual violence and prison reform advocates. To the side stood nearly a dozen corrections officers, many of them union leaders, who listened to the testimony and later said that while most of their colleagues behaved honorably, "failed leadership" at the Department of Corrections allowed problems to fester.

"Is anyone here from the Department of Corrections?" asked committee chair Sen. Linda Greenstein, D-Middlesex, at the start of the hearing.

Growing problems at N.J. women's prison

Facing a criminal probe, an internal investigation by special counsel and mounting lawsuits by current and former inmates, Gov. Phil Murphy's administration -- just a few weeks into its tenure -- declined an invitation to speak at the hearing.

Dan Bryan, a spokesman for the governor, said Murphy was "extremely disturbed by the unacceptable conditions" at the prison and was "working closely with his team to gain a full understanding of the situation."

His team includes Gary Lanigan, who was appointed by Gov. Chris Christie in 2010 and invited to stay on under Murphy's administration. A confirmation hearing for Lanigan was stalled earlier this month amid questions from lawmakers about what the corrections department was doing to stem the abuse.

The sober, three-hour hearing was convened by the Senate Law and Public Safety Committee in response to a series of NJ Advance Media reports last year showing problems at the Hunterdon County prison were far wider than corrections officials had publicly acknowledged.

"This problem goes back many, many years, it's nothing new, and it was known to certain people," Greenstein said in her opening remarks.

Oliver Barry, an attorney representing nine women who had not previously come forward, appeared alongside two of his clients, former inmates who identified themselves only by the initials A.F. and M.D.

The women could not address the panel directly, Barry said, because they are expected to testify in the upcoming criminal trial of one of the indicted officers, Jason Mays, who they say harassed them, forced them to undress in front of him and sexually assaulted them.

One of the women wept openly as Barry relayed a statement on their behalf.

"It's difficult to describe the way it's made my life feel less valuable," he said, quoting his client.

An attorney for the officer could not be reached for comment.

The panel also heard from experts, including Brenda Smith, a law professor at American University in Washington, D.C., and director of the Project on Addressing Prison Rape. Smith told lawmakers that time was ripe to address issues at the prison.

Smith noted that audits found Edna Mahan in compliance with federal laws meant to prevent inmate abuse. That sex assault could happen at a facility that meets federal standards only underscores how inadequate those standards are, she said.

"This is a crisis, but it is an opportunity to dig deep," she told lawmakers.

Lydia Thornton, another former inmate, said investigations of prison abuse should be conducted by an outside monitor rather than the prison system's internal affairs unit, and that lawmakers should create a citizen oversight panel.

She also said staff who admit abuse should not receive plea deals allowing them to avoid registering as sex offenders, as was the case with two Edna Mahan employees who pleaded guilty to accusations they abused inmates. Hunterdon County prosecutors allowed them to plead guilty to charges of official misconduct, waiving mandatory minimum sentences in the process.

Sean Sprich, a vice president of the corrections officers union PBA Local 105, said the union has declined to pay legal fees of officers found to have engaged in sexual misconduct by a union review board and has for years requested the department implement better training.

The department's approach to problems at the prison, he said, has been to "keep things quiet and save money, all to the detriment of officers, inmates, civilians and taxpayers."

A spokesman for Lanigan, the corrections commissioner, did not return a message seeking comment.

He has been renominated to his post by Murphy but still needs the approval of the Senate. At the hearing, lawmakers said they were unhappy with the fact the department has said little publicly about what it was doing to improve conditions at Edna Mahan.

"Unless we get some answers, I think he's going to have some problems getting confirmed," said state Sen. Christopher "Kip" Bateman, R-Somerset.

S.P. Sullivan may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.