Terrell Unit Captain Terminated

Prison Captain Faces Termination After Investigation

POSTED: 2:32 pm CDT May 28, 2008

UPDATED: 5:45 pm CDT May 28, 2008

HOUSTON -- Local 2 Investigates has learned the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has formally taken action to fire a top prison captain.

Vonda Rafter is the latest prison leader ousted after Local 2 Investigates exposed serious charges of corruption and cover-up at the C.T. Terrell prison unit in Brazoria County.

Whistleblowers working inside the prison had reported serious crimes committed by Rafter last year, but both prison leaders and TDCJ officials took no action until now.

Rafter spent more than 17 years working inside the Terrell prison. She's facing termination after she was dismissed for the same sort of wrongdoing Local 2 Investigates exposed earlier this month.

"Right away, they started telling me about the captain being involved with offenders and how organized it was, the staff that was involved, who was bringing it what," said a corrections officer on the condition of anonymity.

Corrections officers inside Terrell blew the whistle. They sent Terrell prison leaders written reports outlining specific, serious claims of wrongdoing by Rafter back in 2007.

Those reports outlined claims of drug trafficking, ignoring inappropriate relationships with inmates, and giving gang members key jobs inside the prison.

"When I started looking in their (inmates) files and looking at what jobs they had and what areas they lived in, there was a lot of questionable things going on," said the corrections officer.

A written report by a confidential informant, an inmate who is a gang member inside Terrell, claimed Rafter "ran the unit" and provided inmates "protection from shakedowns or major cases or any type of heat."

"There are so many officers that are connected, including the rank from the Captain on down," said the corrections officer. "It's a large number of people that are watching each other's back."

The officers' written reports made it all the way to Region III prison headquarters.

However, the officers said no action was taken against Rafter. Instead, the officers claim they were ordered to work immediately under Rafter's supervision. She ended up filing disciplinary actions against them.

"Within reporting it, all we received back was basically harassment and retaliation, " said another corrections officer, also on condition of anonymity.

After Local 2 Investigates aired the officers' story, and almost a year after the officers told leaders at Terrell and prison system headquarters, similar allegations have now lead to Rafter's dismissal.

TDCJ leaders recommended firing Rafter after a disciplinary hearing ruled she had assigned a known gang-member to work a certain job at Terrell that was against prison policy.

After KPRC Local 2 Investigates began investigating the story, Rafter was transferred to another prison, then dismissed. Rafter is appealing that dismissal. The station tried reaching her by phone several times, but no one answered.

TDCJ leaders are expected to be questioned about all of this at a joint legislative hearing on June 4 in Austin.

Previous Local 2 Investigates Stories:

May 15, 2008: Prison Leaders Vow Investigation After Roadside Clash With News Crew May 15, 2008: Texas Senate Calls Hearings Over Prison Corruption May 7, 2008: Prison On Lockdown After Local 2 Investigation May 6, 2008: Prison Warden Removed Following Local 2 Investigation May 3, 2008: Local 2 Investigates Charges Of Prison Corruption May 2, 2008: Have Corrupt Officers Taken Over Local Prison?

If you have a news tip or question for KPRC Local 2 Investigates, drop them an e-mail or call their tipline at (713) 223-TIPS (8477).

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