Montana Prison Warden Fired for Creating Hostile Workplace
Montana Women’s Prison (MWP) Warden Jennie Hansen was fired on March 4, 2024, after an internal investigation determined she created a hostile workplace for prison employees. She had been on administrative leave since January 2024, while investigators with the state Department of Corrections (DOC) traced a series of “inappropriate” remarks and behavior with subordinates.
For some employees Hansen mimed the allegedly drunken behavior of another subordinate at an Oregon conference, accusing the unnamed employee of “walking around drunk among the homeless people” in Portland. Other comments betrayed a fascination with testicles: After asking whether a new lesbian employee might be male and being told no, she pretended to lift testicles in her own crotch and asked, “Are you sure?” The Warden told others during meetings that “the only person’s balls that matter are mine.” Employees reported steering clear of their boss and her volatile behavior so that their “head is not on the plate.” See: Admin. Investigation Report RE: Jennie Hansen, Mont. DOC (Jan. 19, 2024).
Hansen had been employed by DOC since 2009, serving from 2017 until her termination as top official at MWP, whose 242 beds were nearly filled with 240 prisoners at the time. Associate Warden Alex Schroeckenstein was tapped to serve as Acting Warden while a search got underway for Hansen’s permanent replacement.
Additional source: Helena Independent Record