Former officers at a Lexington prison sexually abused inmates, grand jury alleges
Two former federal corrections officers who worked in Lexington have been indicted on charges of sexual abuse and civil rights violations after previously being accused of assaulting inmates.
Christopher Brian Goodwin, 45, and Hosea Lee, 42, were indicted in separate federal cases after an investigation by the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General and the FBI, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. The two worked at the Federal Medical Center, a federal facility on Leestown Road in Lexington.
The indictments accused the officers of rape, inappropriate sexual contact with inmates and harassment. The indictments also alleged that death threats were made to victims.
Lawsuits had previously been filed against both Goodwin and Lee, alleging illegal conduct.
Goodwin allegedly engaged in sexual conduct on several occasions with four inmates who were in the Bureau of Prisons’ custody, according to the Department of Justice. The alleged offenses happened between April 2019 and September 2019.
“The indictment alleges that on at least one of those occasions, (Goodwin) sexually abused an inmate by using a threat that if the victim did not comply, they would be subjected to death, bodily injury, or kidnapping,” the Department of Justice said in a news release.
Lee was also accused of sexual abuse and threatening victims.
“Lee’s indictment alleges that, between August 2019 and December 2019, he engaged in sexual conduct with five inmates in (Bureau of Prisons) custody,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in a news release. “It is alleged that Lee sexually abused two of the victims by using a threat that their families and children would be killed or harmed if they did not comply.”
Goodwin was charged with one count of deprivation of rights under color of law, one count of aggravated sexual abuse by force, seven counts of abusive sexual contact and three counts of sexual abuse of a ward. He was also indicted on one count of providing a prohibited object — cigarettes — to an inmate.
Lee was charged with two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, two counts of aggravated sexual abuse by force or threat, eight counts of sexual abuse of a ward and two counts of abusive sexual contact.
Lee was also charged with one count of providing a prohibited object — Suboxone — to an inmate.
A lawsuit filed by one of Goodwin’s alleged victims accused him of pulling her into a storage room and raping her despite her attempts to escape, according to court records. The woman said the sexual assault happened in September 2019.
Evidence was collected and the woman was temporarily moved to the Fayette County Detention Center “for her safety,” But she was later transferred back to the Federal Medical Center, and Goodwin was still there, though he’d been transferred to the computer services division, according to the complaint filed in the lawsuit.
The woman’s attorneys alleged that she was retaliated against and was transferred to a federal facility in West Virginia.
Two lawsuits were filed accusing Lee of sexual abuse, according to court records. One lawsuit alleged that Lee raped the victim three times, according to court records. A second lawsuit filed against him alleged that he demanded oral sex from an inmate, who complied out of fear that she would fail the Residential Drug Abuse Program if she didn’t do what he wanted.
The woman who filed the most recent lawsuit against Lee and the woman who filed the first lawsuit against him both tested positive for a sexually transmitted disease after being assaulted by Lee, they allege in their lawsuits.
Lee filed a response to the first lawsuit against him, denying allegations that he raped the first woman to sue him.
If found guilty, each of the former officers could face up to one year in prison for the deprivation of rights charge; up to life in prison for the aggravated sexual abuse charges; up to 15 years for sexual abuse of a ward; up to two years for sexual abuse by force; up to 20 years for providing a narcotic to an inmate; and up to six months for providing other prohibited objects to an inmate, according to the Department of Justice.
Goodwin is scheduled to make his initial court appearance in Lexington Friday. Lee is scheduled to appear in court in Lexington on Aug. 6.
This story was originally published July 29, 2021 at 3:22 PM.