Ex-prison warden faces trial over inmate abuse allegations OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The former warden of an abuse-plagued federal women’s prison known as the “rape club” went on trial Monday, accused of molesting inmates and forcing them to pose naked in their cells.Opening statements kicked off Monday in federal court in Oakland, with prosecutors spelling out evidence they said would show Garcia’s abuse of several inmates followed a pattern, starting with compliments, flattery and promises of transfers to lower security prisons and escalated to sexual encounters.Garcia is charged with abusing three inmates between December 2019 and July 2021, but jurors could hear from as many as six women who say he groped them and told them to pose naked or in provocative clothing.The case, with shades of #MeToo behind bars, is also likely to put a spotlight on the Bureau of Prisons, calling into question its handling of sexual abuse complaints from inmates against staff and the vetting process for the people it chooses to run its prisons.In those cases, Monaco said prosecutors should consider asking judges for sentences that go beyond the federal guidelines if the sentence recommended in the guidelines isn’t “fair and proportional to the seriousness of the offenses.” Of the four other Dublin workers charged with abusing inmates, three have pleaded guilty and one is scheduled to stand trial next year."