Prison guard held hostage, raped by inmate sues CDCR, calls for changes

By Michelle Bandur

Click here for updates on this story

    SACRAMENTO, California (KCRA) — A California corrections officer is sharing, in her own words, what she calls the “worst night of her life.”

Katie Jackson, 40, said an inmate repeatedly sexually assaulted her at gunpoint for four hours while on the job at Sierra Conservation Center in Jamestown.

She’s filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

The lawsuit outlines the ordeal experienced by Jackson on Jan. 20, 2024.

“My life, along with my children, my family and my fellow correctional officers, was threatened with death if I did not cooperate,” Jackson said during a news conference Monday on the steps of the State Capitol with her lawyers.

The mother of three thought she was going to be killed on the job while working the evening shift.

“There were a lot of failed security measures within that institution that night,” she said. “It’s heartbreaking because it could have easily been prevented, and it wasn’t.”

The facility houses low and medium-security inmates, many of who train for the firefighter program.

Violent offenders are not supposed to be housed there.

Jackson’s lawyers said Robert Lawrence Ransom, Jr, 41, should have never been transferred to Jamestown because of his violent background as a killer and rapist.

“The California model failed. That’s why we’re here. It failed in a horrific, horrific manner,” said Mark Peacock, Jackson’s lawyer. “Why is the California model even there? Because the Department of Corrections wants to do what? Save money.”

The lawsuit states during the evening count, all inmates were accounted for and said to be secured in their cells.

In reality, the document said, Ransom was concealed within a laundry cart and officers inexcusably failed to detect Ransom, declaring the cart clear.

Lawyers called this a dereliction of duty.

Jackson said Ransom was able to learn officers’ routines with his job in the laundry area.

She said he disguised himself as an officer, knocked on the door to the control booth and she mistakenly let him in the room. She said routinely officers knock on the door to relieve other officers of their shift.

She also said during the four hours she tried to make eye contact with officers outside the control room by mouthing, “help me, help me,” but no one noticed.

“What ensued after an inmate gained access to a highly restricted area was four hours of the most unimaginable horrors,” Jackson said. “I was strangled. I was held hostage at gunpoint, and I was raped multiple times.”

Jackson said she convinced Ransom she would bring in drugs and weapons, and he believed her and returned to his cell.

She said supervisors questioned her for six hours before going to the hospital. Jackson said they treated her as a suspect, not a victim, not allowing her to use the bathroom or drink water.

She hopes the lawsuit will change the culture behind bars.

“You are undermined constantly at every corner, and the inmates essentially have more rights and more power than you do as correctional officers,” Jackson said.

CDCR sent a statement about the lawsuit.

“CDCR cannot comment on pending litigation. However, CDCR’s top priority is the safety and well-being of our staff and those who reside in our institutions. When incidents occur within a facility, CDCR conducts internal investigations and refers matters to the local district attorney as appropriate.”

The Tuolumne County District Attorney filed 12 felonies against Ransom. He is expected to appear in court on Feb. 10 to hear the new charges.

He’s currently serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole. His first parole hearing is set for March 2029.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.