Harassment and Attacks From Fellow Officers in U.S. Prisons

In America’s hidden world of prisons and jails, officers are unarmed and outnumbered by inmates: Their peers are their only protection.

Officer Colleen Payton expected that her job at the Little Sandy Correctional Complex in Kentucky could be dangerous, but she did not expect that it would be because of a threat from a male colleague. Ms. Payton and four of her fellow officers have been subjected to a series of alleged sexual attacks at the hands of a co-worker. And they are not alone.

A nine-month investigation for this short documentary, “Code of Silence,” has found that female officers around the country regularly face sexual harassment by colleagues and superiors. And that fear of retaliation stops many from reporting incidents, while those who do can face repercussions.