An El Paso woman is suing after staff members at a Fort Worth women’s prison sexually abused her and raped her, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court this week.

April Lacey was incarcerated at FMC Carswell — a federal medical prison for women in northwest Fort Worth — from late 2014 through late 2021. A prison staff member sexually abused Lacey in 2015, the lawsuit says. And then, in late 2020 or early 2021, a prison recreation specialist, who was tasked with overseeing Lacey and others who were sick with COVID-19, raped Lacey twice, the suit says.

The recreation specialist, who no longer works at Carswell, used his authority and the “express or implicit threat of retaliation if she reported the conduct,” the suit says.

A representative of Carswell did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday morning.

In a statement sent by her attorneys, Lacey said she’s still dealing with the trauma of the assaults.

“It’s not right for the staff to prey on us. Being raped was not part of my sentence,” Lacey said in the statement. “I’ve found the courage to speak about it and file this lawsuit because I don’t want this to keep happening to women at Carswell. I hope someone will protect them.”

Lacey is not the first woman to report sexual abuse at FMC Carswell. A 2022 Star-Telegram investigation found that the prison has long been plagued with systemic sexual abuse and cover-ups. A federal report, based on data from 2014 to 2018, found that Carswell had more reports of sexual abuse by a staff member than any other federal women’s prison, the Star-Telegram previously reported. A total of 35 women at Carswell reported sexual assaults during that time, and experts have said that’s likely an undercount.

Carswell houses women who are more vulnerable than those being held at other prisons. The Fort Worth facility is the only federal medical prison for women, and many of the women are sent there specifically for medical care.

In a prepared statement, one of Lacey’s attorneys called out the systemic issues at Carswell.

“FMC Carswell has repeatedly failed to address sexual violence that staff members inflict on incarcerated women,” said Regina Powers, an attorney at the New York-based firm Bedlock Levine & Hoffman. “This inaction enables and protects sexual abusers, and assures that sexual abuse will continue.”

Lacey is also represented by Randall Kallinen, a civil rights attorney based in Houston.

Lacey and her attorneys filed the lawsuit on Wednesday, in the El Paso division of U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. The suit, which names both the United States government and the recreation specialist at Carswell, has not yet been scheduled for any hearings.

Editor’s note: This is a developing story. Check back for updates.