12 FORMER WORKERS FOR PRISON COMPANY INDICTED IN SEX
CASES

Misconduct Alleged In Travis County

AUSTIN -- Twelve former employees of one of the nation's largest
private prison companies were indicted Wednesday on charges ranging
from rape to sexual harassment of 16 women held in the state jail run
by Travis County.

Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle said the indictments for
"illegal sexual conduct" of 11 former guards and a former inmate
counselor for the Wackenhut Corrections Corp. are the first "of what
we expect to be a continuing series of indictments" stemming from
allegations of widespread misconduct at the facility.

The incidents occurred, according to the indictments, between May 6,
1997, and Aug. 30 of this year.

The facility -- one of many state jails created by the Legislature to
house nonviolent felons sentenced for no more than two years -- was
under contract from the state to Travis County. The county
subsequently subcontracted the operation to Wackenhut Corrections,
which operates numerous state and county lockups nationwide.

Earle said that 20 other cases involving similar allegations of
illegal sexual conduct are still under investigation at the Austin
jail and will be presented to grand juries soon.

Five guards are accused of rape; others are accused of a variety of
sex crimes or sexual harassment.

"Several defendants face multiple charges, and some inmates were
victimized by more than one guard," Earle added. The indictments
resulted from a joint investigation by Earle's office and Travis
County Sheriff Margo Frasier.

In addition, the Travis County Public Integrity Unit -- a special arm
of the district attorney's office -- and the state comptroller's
office are investigating the possibility of administrative and
financial fraud by Wackenhut.

Authorities said they are looking into allegations of the
falsification of documents and misuse of funds by jail
administrators.

Wackenhut spokesman Pat Cannan declined comment other than to say the
Florida-based company did not learn of the indictments until reporters
contacted them.

Earle and Frasier said they were appalled at the widespread abuse of
the jail inmates.

The investigations and indictments stemmed from a federal lawsuit
filed this summer by a former prisoner who claimed she had been raped
by a guard.

"From the onset, we decided we should look at (possible) additional
victims," Frasier said. Investigators questioned more than 100
witnesses, coming up with the list of at least 16 women who said they
were victims.

Frasier attributed the problems at the facility to a jail that not
only was poorly run but also had guards that were poorly trained and
underpaid. She said she was particularly outraged by the employees,
who, she said, "used their position and power of the badge" to
mistreat the women. In addition to allegations of sexual misconduct,
she said investigators also turned up numerous instances of
contraband, including cigarettes and illegal drugs, "flowing freely"
within the jail.

Earle said the abuses, which he contends were widespread when
Wackenhut ran the jail, "are an outrage in a civilized society,"
particularly in light of the "national scandal" of sexual abuse of
female prisoners.

"We thought we were beyond that kind of primitive behavior," he said.
Frasier said the investigation showed that a lot of the women's
complaints were brought to the attention of jail administrators.

But the administrators failed to adequately investigate the inmates'
claims, she said. "Whether they don't know how to conduct an
investigation or chose not to, we don't know."

Under state law, sexual assault, or rape, is a second-degree felony
punishable by as much as 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Improper sexual activity with a person in custody involves sexual
intercourse or contact and is a state jail felony punishable by up to
two years in a state jail and a $10,000 fine.

Official oppression involves such conduct as sexual harassment, making
sexual advances or requesting sexual favors. It is a Class A
misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in a county jail and a $4,000
fine.

Those indicted include Nathaniel Jenkins Sr. and Nathaniel Jenkins Jr.
Whether they are father and son could not be verified. The senior
Jenkins is charged with one count of sexual assault, two counts of
improper sexual activity and one count of official oppression. The
indictment alleges he victimized two women prisoners.

Jenkins Jr. was charged with one count of sexual assault and two
counts of improper sexual activity. He victimized three different
women, according to court documents.

Ages and addresses were not included in the indictment
material.

Others indicted were:

Reginald Townsend, accused of sexual assault, and charged earlier this
year with that crime after an inmate gave birth to his child; Eladio
Serna, accused of deviate sexual intercourse; Anthony Shane Henry,
deviate sexual intercourse and sexual harassment; Norwood Lee
Hilstock, sexual assault, deviate sexual intercourse and sexual
harassment; Tyrone Means, sexual assault and sexual intercourse;
Christopher Colvin and Pervis Richard, also known as Richard Purvis,
accused of having sexual intercourse with a prisoner; Rory Smith and
Eric Garcia, official oppression; and Arthur Benner, sexual harassment.

Frasier said none of the defendants had been arrested by Wednesday
afternoon.

The Travis County state jail is not the only Wackenhut-run facility in
Texas where allegations of sexual misconduct between guards and
inmates have arisen.

Earlier this year, a guard at a Lockhart facility operated by
Wackenhut was accused in a federal lawsuit of sexually assaulting a
prisoner over a four-month period in 1996.