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| Inmates Awarded $160,000 |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 01/16/2006 |
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A $160,000 settlement has been reached with three female convicts who claimed to have been sexually abused by an Iowa prison officer. Finalized last month, the cost of the settlement will be shared by Iowa taxpayers and Kenneth Parrot, a former Mount Pleasant corrections officer. According to court documents, Parrot threatened female inmates and masturbated in front of them. The settlement comes as the number of female inmates increases. For example, the women's prison in Mitchellville had 580 inmates in October, up from fewer than 100 in the mid-1980s. In October, women accounted for 768 of Iowa's 8,525 inmates, state records showed. The women's attorney said the cases reflect a failure by prison leaders to send a clear message on how the growing number of female inmates should be treated. Iowa corrections officials say plans are under way to address the problem through training and a telephone hot line. The effort will be financed with a $1 million federal grant, officials said. Sexual abuse has ''always not been tolerable,'' said Iowa Department of Corrections spokesman Fred Scaletta. ''It's just that now we're doing more things to prevent it.'' According to court records, Melissa Henderson, Shantelle Mundell-Fry and Yolanda Davis were abused by Parrot in early 2003 at the Mount Pleasant prison. Prison officials were first to settle the lawsuits, agreeing to pay $50,000 to Mundell-Fry, $25,000 to Henderson and $5,000 to Davis. U.S. District Judge James Gritzner last month ordered Parrot to pay matching amounts. In 2003, Parrot pleaded guilty to two counts of violating a state law against sexual misconduct with a prison inmate. He had been on probation until November. He served no prison time. Two other lawsuits are pending over allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior by another Mount Pleasant officer. Lipman, the lawyer for all five women, said other cases are working their way through the corrections grievance process. |
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