(Seattle, Washington) Based on allegations of sexual misconduct involving male guards and female inmates at the King County Jail, eight corrections officers have been suspended in an expanding investigation of criminal malfeasance. The probe of misconduct started with one 27-year-old female inmate alleging sexual abuse by two officers and it grew when a search of guards' lockers found "numerous photos of nude women and stacks of sexually explicit letters written by female inmates." As a result, five additional corrections officers were implicated and, since it was clear that criminal allegations were involved, the investigation was turned over to the King County Sheriff's Office.

In court records and from media sources, it's claimed that the jail guards engaged in sexual contact, including forced oral sex, with female inmates along with participating in a widespread practice of bartering items such as chocolate, marijuana, and tequila for sex. No names have been released and no charges have been filed as yet in the ongoing investigation. Charges likely will be pursued since there is at least some tangible physical evidence of malfeasance by the corrections officers, i.e. photos and the inmates' letters.

Interestingly, although this story has been in the local news for at least two weeks, it hasn't received much attention by the national media. With jailed females subjected to alleged widespread sexual abuse by the guard staff, you would imagine that the American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and others would be expressing outrage and calling for the firing of the chief of corrections and the closure of the King County Jail. After all, isn't that exactly what is being demanded in response to allegations of wrongdoing by the guard staff at Guantanamo Bay?

The only difference between Gitmo and the King County Jail is that there is actual physical evidence in existence which seems to support the allegations of criminal behavior by the guards in the King County Jail. At Guantanamo Bay, the alleged wrongdoing is the mishandling of a book, which I don't believe is criminal. And, as I've heard, there's no physical evidence that it actually occurred, just testimony.

Nevertheless, when it comes to getting help from the leftist do-gooder outfits like the ACLU, AI, and HRW, it's much better to be a murdering terrorist fanatic in Gitmo than an American female in the King County Jail.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.