Sexual abuse uncovered at Connecticut Halfway House

Attorney Rachel Baird has filed a lawsuit on behalf of inmates who were sexually abused, harassed, and threatened during their time at a halfway house in Bloomfield, CT.  The sexual abuse was committed by employees of Community Solutions, Inc. (CSI), a nonprofit corporation under contract with the state to provide residential services for inmates.

Specifically, Program Director Sean Ball and general staff member Frederick Lester sexually molested and harassed inmates.  Ball and Lester also threatened inmates with disciplinary action, including returning inmates to prison, if they resisted sexual advances or reported the abuses.

The abuse problems at the halfway house were exacerbated by the indifference and slow response of the Department of Corrections (DOC) and the Department of Public Safety in investigating the matter.  In addition, the Town of Bloomfield approved the continuation and expansion of operations at the halfway house without adequately conducting biannual reviews.

The following is a timeline of the events leading up to the lawsuit, with links to corroborating documentation.  Note that more than seven months passed between the first formal inmate complaint and when an investigator finally got around to interviewing that inmate.

TIMELINE

July 9, 2007:  Inmate at Connecticut halfway house reports and makes a written statement in the company of parole officer Carolynn Lindley that Program Director Sean Ball had been inappropriate.  Manager of Parole and Community Services Residential Unit Tom O’Connor suggested to Randy Baren, Director of Parole and Community Services, that further investigation be taken.

October 18, 2007:  Inmate makes further complaints to Carolyn Lindley, which finally prompts her to draft an incident report.  The report mentions inappropriate behavior by Program Director Sean Ball and general staff member Frederick Lester, including:

·     Program Director Sean Ball inappropriately touching inmates, insisting on being called “Auntie Shawny,” and visiting the halfway house at irregular hours

·     Staff members showing favoritism toward certain inmates by allowing them to possess cell phones and pornographic materials, which would otherwise be considered contraband

·     Abuse of power by staff member Frederick Lester, who is specifically identified as a sexual predator.

November 17, 2007:  The same inmate provides an Inmate Request form to DOC Deputy Warden Monica Rinaldi stating that he had been sexually harassed.  Copies of the report are forwarded to multiple administrators, including DOC Director of Parole and Community Services Randy Braren.

November 23, 2007:  Theresa Lantz, then Commissioner, State Department of Corrections, informs Michael Lajoie, Director of Security, about possible “undue familiarity” involving staff and inmates at the halfway house.  The report states that Lantz is directing an investigation into the matter.

December 5, 2007:  Captain Brian Zawilinski of the DOC is assigned to investigate the matter.

January 16, 2008:  A letter from a different inmate reports that Frederick Lester asked for urine samples (despite no test kits being available) and groped inmates’ genitals and buttocks during pat downs and pocket searches.

January 18, 2008:  A letter from another inmate indicates that between November 1, 2007 and December 21, 2007, he was sexually harassed and fondled by Frederick Lester at the halfway house, and that Director Ball was aware of Lester’s behavior but did nothing about it.  Parole Officer Carolyn Lindley informs the inmate that Ball and Lester had been named before under similar circumstances of sexual misconduct.

January 24, 2008:  Frederick Lester terminated from employment at halfway house.

February 15, 2008:  DOC Captain Brian Zawilinski finally follows up on his investigation and interviews the inmate who originally reported sexual harassment at the halfway house.

May 20, 2008:  Zawilinski interviews staff member at halfway house.  Staff member reveals that Sean Ball had pictures of the genitalia of inmates on his cell phone, and that Ball would destroy disciplinary reports for inmates who acquiesced to Ball’s sexual demands.

June 3, 2008:  Zawilinski interviews staff member who admits that the halfway house had no organization or leadership, that inmates used drugs and alcohol, and that Sean Ball would go absent from the Center with an inmate for two to three hours daily.

June 30, 2008:  Program Director Sean Ball terminated from employment.

August 25, 2008:  Captain Zawilinski submits his Investigation Report to Commissioner Theresa Lantz.

March 10, 2009:  Case is deemed complete by Captain Zawilinski.  Commissioner Lantz makes recommendations for DOC halfway houses and transitional facilities.  The recommendations fail to even mention sexual abuse, and do not include specific steps designed to investigate the extent of abuse in the system, prevent future abuses, or address the needs of victims.  The document even belittles the concerns of abuse victims with a reference to “inmate con games.”

May 6, 2010:  Associate Press reports that former deputy warden Neal Kearney was charged with sexually assaulting an inmate at the Bergin Correctional Institution in Storrs, CT.  Ironically, Neal Kearney was the officer who escorted Sean Ball from the halfway house after his termination as Program Director.  Kearney later pleads guilty to second-degree sexual assault.