6 female jailers in strip-search trial

A Manhattan jury heard Wednesday how five former women correction officers and their captain unlawfully subjected jail visitors to heavy-handed strip searches over a five-month period.

In his opening statement in Manhattan Supreme Court, Assistant District Attorney Daniel Passeser told the jury of how retired Capt. Leslie-Ann Absalom, Lisette Rodriguez, Latoya Shuford (inset right), Daphne Farmer, Jennifer George (inset left) and Alifa

Waiters knowingly conducted unlawful searches at The Tombs in 2018 and later lied about the incidents in paperwork.

“This case is not about keeping marijuana and cigarettes out of the Manhattan Detention Complex,” Passeser said. “This case is about officers and a captain who conspired to violate the rules so that they could do more than just keep out contraband.

“They thought the rules didn’t apply to them and people visiting their loved ones in jail didn’t deserve basic human dignity.”

Passeser said the correction officers had no respect for the women they stripsearched and assumed nobody else would, either.

“After all, who would you believe: corrections officers or the girlfriends of criminals?” he asked.

The prosecutor told the jury of how the officers falsely reported that visitors had agreed to the strip searches in at least three of the five incidents in question.

During one incident, Passeser said defendants Rodriguez, Farmer, George and Waiters roughed up a woman they suspected had contraband and began choking her before reaching inside her underwear.

The visitor had been carrying contraband — but the officers later lied and said it had fallen out of her pants, prosecutors said.

Defense attorneys placed blame on the Correction Department, which they claim failed to properly train the officers on how to conduct searches.

“This case is nothing more than scapegoating these women, these officers, because none of the higherups want to take responsibility,” said lawyer Louis Albert, who represents Rodriguez.

Paul London, who represents Waiters, slammed the prosecution for bringing about charges in the first place.

“This is a disciplinary trial they’re making look criminal,” he said.

Farmer’s lawyer, Renee Hill, said that by knowing the visitors had contraband the officers were going to get in trouble whether they conducted the searches or not.

“Damned if they do, damned if they don’t,” she said.

The women have pleaded not guilty to official misconduct, unlawful imprisonment, conspiracy and other related charges.

The trial continues Thursday.