By CP StaffMonday, January 12, 2026Unsplash/Matthew Ansley

An advocate for reform in women’s prisons is calling for an overhaul of federal law following a recent report highlighting serious allegations of harassment and sexual assault at a Massachusetts women’s correctional facility.

The report, published Wednesday by The Hill as an opinion column from mental health professional and journalist Forest Romm, details claims from female inmates at MCI-Framingham, a 150-year-old medium-security prison in the Boston area. The report cited comments from inmates who described the facility as "a haven for sexual predators who pretend to be transgender" and allege that male offenders who self-identify as women have been housed there under the state's 2018 Criminal Justice Reform Act.

Romm identifies several MCI-Framingham inmates with histories of violent sexual offenses against women and children, including cases where individuals discontinued hormone treatments after transfer while retaining male genitalia.

According to the report, female inmates reportedly face harassment, abuse and retaliation for reporting incidents, with one woman claiming she was raped in November and then placed in restrictive housing, stating, “It feels like I’m being punished for speaking up. ... They are treating me as if I should have kept my mouth shut — as if it’s my fault, or as though I should have defended myself.”

Amie Ichikawa, executive director and founding member of Woman II Woman, which advocates for the safety, dignity and re-entry support of incarcerated women, praised the article.

"I appreciate all journalists who are willing to put their necks on the chopping block to expose this nationwide crime against women," Ichikawa told The Christian Post.

Calling for systemic changes in response to the allegations, Ichikawa urged lawmakers to focus on an overhaul of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) of 2003, specifically language that she says made LGBT-identified inmates a “protected class.”

She pointed to a 2012 regulation which had “the possibly unintended outcome of creating an untouchable privilege class that wields power over staff and the female population with rights and benefits no one in the carceral system has ever had."

“Never has an inmate been able to have their own perception of safety and well being taken into serious consideration by any staff member for any reason until now, and exclusively for [transgender]-identified people," she said. 

The advocate called for greater accountability and proposed a judiciary committee hearing aimed at “restorative justice both for incarcerated women and members of the [transgender-identified] community who have been used by agenda driven politicians and NGOs to further female erasure and to secure funding for their manufactured crisis.”

Such public hearings, she added, could increase pressure on the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether “we’re going to be a nation ruled by the fleeting fluid feelings associated with gender or … a country with a judicial system based on the tangible reality of sex."

The report comes  against the backdrop of Massachusetts' ongoing efforts to modernize MCI-Framingham.

Last June, Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll announced a $20.5 million initial investment as part of a $360 million plan to renovate the historic facility, originally built in 1877. The project aims to transform the facility into a "modern and sustainable facility that supports rehabilitation and promotes public safety," including downsizing the footprint from 260,000 to 200,000 square feet, reducing bed capacity, modernizing housing and mental health treatment, and introducing energy-efficient infrastructure.

As of May 2025, the prison housed 218 women — well below its nearly 600-person operational capacity — with many inmates over age 40, with significant mental health needs. At the time, Healey described the plan as "an investment in people, a commitment to second chances, and a responsibility to build a safer future for communities statewide."