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Female guards at Edmonton prison launch lawsuit alleging bullying, sex assaults

EDMONTON — Four female guards at Edmonton Institution have filed a lawsuit alleging bullying, harassment and sexual assaults by other staff.
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Four female guards at Edmonton Institution have filed a lawsuit alleging bullying, harassment and sexual assaults by other staff. (File photo by Black Press)

EDMONTON — Four female guards at Edmonton Institution have filed a lawsuit alleging bullying, harassment and sexual assaults by other staff.

The suit against the Correctional Service of Canada and the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers details abuse claims over the past decade at the maximum-security prison.

The allegations include one male guard sticking his hand down the pants of a female co-worker and another female guard receiving chemical burns on her buttocks after pepper spray was used on a toilet seat.

The Correctional Service announced in January that it had fired six employees following an investigation into allegations of workplace misconduct.

A workplace assessment completed last year by an outside agency described the prison as a toxic environment.

None of the allegations have been proven in court and no statements of defence have yet been filed.