A woman who claims she was told to take off her jeans when going through a security check at Castlerea Prison, and as a result accidentally dropped her underwear leaving her exposed for a short time, has sued the State for damages.
Nataliya Matviyenko, a native of Ukraine, claims she was told by a prison officer to take off her jeans because they contained decorative metal buttons or studs before going through a metal detector while visiting her husband in the prison.
Arising from that incident on May 6th 2009, she has sued the Governor of Castlerea Prison, Irish Prison Service and the Minister for Justice claiming damages for alleged negligence and breach of duty.
She also alleges her constitutional rights were breached.
The claims are denied and the defendants plead Ms Matviyenko was never asked to remove her trousers while going through the prison’s screening process.
She was treated appropriately and professionally by the prison officers, it is pleaded.
In evidence to Mr Justice Paul Gilligan, Ms Matviyenko, a naturalised Irish citizen, said she felt “humiliated”, “embarrassed” and like “someone had poured a bucket of dirt over my head,” as a result of the incident.
In her action, the mother of two, with an address at Leas na Coille, Ballybane, Galway, claims she went to the prison to visit her partner, now her husband, and to give him a legal document.
He was then serving a sentence for drink driving.
She had to pass through a security process, similar to going through security at an airport.
She said she had, as instructed, placed some outer garments items in a tray to pass through an x-ray machine.
Before she went through a metal detector, she said she showed the prison officer metal studs or buttons on her jeans. The officer told her to take them off and she believed this meant take off her trousers and she complied, she claims.
She claims she dropped her trousers as far as her knees and that process also accidentally pulled down her underwear, leaving her exposed for a short period.
The prison officer shouted: “What are you doing, are you crazy?” and she immediately pulled up her clothing, she said.
She said she was left feeling humiliated by her experience as there were others present. She was not allowed visit her husband that day and a prison officer told her: “We can’t have you doing a striptease”.
Her counsel Declan McGovern told the court his client was humiliated as result of what happened and afterwards was unable to sleep properly, suffered flashbacks, and her family life had suffered.
The claims are denied. In evidence, Ciaran Croghan, a prison officer, said Ms Matviyenko was never asked to remove her trousers.
In reply to Conor Power SC, for the State, Mr Croghan said he told Ms Matviyenko, when she was going through the security screening process, to place her outer garments, including a belt, jacket and shoes on a tray to be scanned by an x-ray machine.
He said she told him what was required of her was “stupid” and she should not have to do this. He told her this was standard procedure and she was not being “singled out”, he said.
Ms Matviyenko said she had metal studs or buttons on her jeans that might set off the metal detector and he told her that was not a problem, he said.
Just after asking her to remove her shoes, Ms Matviyenko dropped her trousers, he said. He was “shocked” and immediately called his superior officer. When his superior asked her why she dropped her trousers, she replied she was “sorry”, he said.
Under cross examination, Mr Croghan denied he or other prison officers laughed at her and he also denied he asked her to remove her trousers.
The case continues.