Twenty women detained in San Francisco’s county jail are filing a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city, the sheriff’s office and Sheriff Paul Miyamoto, alleging they were subjected to a degrading mass strip search that was recorded by deputies. 

The lawsuit, which attorneys said would be filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on Friday, alleges that roughly a dozen deputies entered the women’s housing unit at the 425 Seventh St. lockup and ordered every woman into the common area. The lawsuit was to be filed on the one-year anniversary of the alleged incident.

Women were then directed one by one into a search area where they were ordered to remove all clothing, lift their breasts, spread their buttocks, squat and cough, according to the complaint. Male deputies were arrayed on a staircase and an upper tier maintained a clear view of the women as they undressed, the suit alleges.

The deputies’ body-worn cameras were activated in violation of the sheriff’s written policy forbidding their use in such a setting, according to the complaint. When a deputy asked a supervising sergeant whether to deactivate her camera, he told her no, according to the complaint. The sergeant later told detainees the footage might be “used for training purposes” and compared it to YouTube.

The presence of the male deputies and the use of the cameras was deliberate, the plaintiffs claim.

Some inmates were forced to remove tampons and pads without replacements, the suit says. Those who filed grievances were placed in administrative segregation or stripped of work assignments.

The alleged misconduct did not end that day. The complaint describes an invasive body cavity search of one plaintiff the following month, a flashlight used to illuminate a plaintiff’s vagina during a July 2025 search, and male deputies refusing to leave a hospital room while a plaintiff gave birth and received pelvic exams in September 2025.

“This is not going away,” said Elizabeth Bertolino of Bertolino Law PLC, co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs. “Despite their fear, despite the retaliation, they still are speaking out.”

The lawsuit brings claims under federal civil rights law as well as California’s Bane Act, the Gender Violence Act, and the state constitution’s privacy clauses. Plaintiffs are seeking compensatory and punitive damages and have demanded a jury trial.

The sheriff’s office said the incident is under review by city officials.

“The Department of Police Accountability’s investigation into this matter has been completed, and its findings are consistent with the Sheriff’s Office’s initial review,” said a statement from a spokesperson for the sheriff. “This matter remains in the administrative review process. As previously stated, male deputies did not strip search female inmates at County Jail 2. The female inmates who were strip searched were searched individually in a private setting.”

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The Sheriff’s Office said it has worked with the Department on the Status of Women, the Human Rights Commission, the Department of Police Accountability, the Sheriff’s Oversight Board, the Public Defender’s Office, and community groups to improve conditions for female inmates.

The women filed a claim against the city (opens in new tab) in November, the first step toward the lawsuit. Their allegations were among the factors cited by Supervisor Jackie Fielder in her March call for an audit of the sheriff’s department practices. That same month, Miyamoto told a supervisor subcommittee that the officers in charge during last year’s strip search were reassigned (opens in new tab).

A male inmate also sued the sheriff’s department last month, claiming that he was beaten by a deputy after complaining that a meal had been withheld.

At a noon vigil in support of the women, organized by All of Us or None, the mood outside the jail was grounded in solidarity.

Dr. Tanisha Cannon, managing director of Legal Services for Prisoners with Children and a member of All of Us or None, said the rally was meant to center the voices of those who experienced the incident and push for systemic change.

”No one should be stripped of their dignity, regardless of what crimes they committed — and especially under the custody of state representatives and the people that we pay taxes for,” Cannon said. “Today is really about centering healing, demanding accountability, and moving forward with litigation.”

Samantha Rogers, who said she was held in the jail on suspicion of a nonviolent drug charge in 2011, attended the vigil. “I’m out here representing the women that don’t have voices,” Rogers said, recalling her own time inside.

“This is the same thing going on, but a different year. Fifteen years later, it’s still happening. It needs to stop.”