TOXIC

Feds: Officials Ignored Dangerous Mold and Asbestos at Women’s Prison

Union reps filed multiple whistleblower complaints that claim officials knowingly jeopardized the health and safety of inmates and employees by ignoring the contamination.

Federal watchdogs have determined that officials at a women’s prison repeatedly overlooked rampant mold and asbestos contaminations. Union representatives at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California, filed multiple whistleblower complaints throughout 2022 that claim officials knowingly jeopardized the health and safety of inmates and employees alike by ignoring the contamination, which, according to Dublin union president Edward Canales, has put them all at “a considerable risk.” Due to the number of complaints, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel has now asked Attorney General Merrick Garland to intervene. In a statement, Bureau of Prisons spokesman Emery Nelson said, “All safety concerns reported by staff at Dublin are being addressed.” The mold and asbestos concerns aren’t the first reports of a toxic environment at the Dublin correctional facility. ABC reports that five employees, including a former warden, have been under investigation for sexually abusing prisoners.