Jon Ponder accuser details alleged abuse in new federal lawsuit

As the founder of the prison reentry nonprofit Hope for Prisoners defends against criminal allegations that he used his power to exploit and sexually abuse inmates, one of his accusers has filed a federal lawsuit against him, the organization and the Nevada Department of Corrections.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court by a person identified only as RS, accuses Jon Ponder of grooming her and committing sexual abuse and battery inside the Jean Conservation Camp and at Hope for Prisoners’ offices in Las Vegas. The alleged victim also reported that the abuse continued after her release, the complaint said.

“Ponder used that delegated authority as a tool to sexually exploit the women placed under it, repeatedly and over a period of years,” the lawsuit alleges. “He targeted women whose freedom, families, and futures he could influence, many of them mothers desperate to see their children. He isolated them where no camera or officer could see. And he demanded their silence.”

The lawsuit also accuses the state corrections department of failing to protect inmates from sexual abuse, including exempting Ponder from security and conduct rules, and its administrators of disregarding complaints made against Ponder. The claims against Hope for Prisoners include allegations of negligence and failures in hiring, supervising and retaining employees.

It’s unclear from court records whether Ponder has hired an attorney to represent him in the civil case.

Hope for Prisoners and the Nevada Department of Corrections did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Criminal allegations

The allegations against Ponder have begun to tarnish his redemption story, from convicted bank robber to founder of a reentry nonprofit once celebrated by judges, attorneys, and law enforcement officials, but now with some faith leaders and other nonprofit groups distancing themselves.

After his initial arrest in August on suspicion of nine felonies and 11 gross misdemeanors, including sexual assault, Ponder was indicted in late September on additional charges, as new accusers and allegations surfaced.

The most recent charges included four counts of sexual assault, multiple counts of sexual abuse of a prisoner by a prison contractor or volunteer, multiple counts of unauthorized custodial contact with a prisoner, two counts of first-degree kidnapping and a count of open or gross lewdness.

The initial criminal charges stemmed from a Metropolitan Police Department investigation after complaints were filed with the Office of the Inspector General. Metro detectives concluded that Ponder used his relationship with the Nevada Department of Corrections and position of authority to sexually prey on vulnerable female inmates seeking rehabilitation at the Jean Conservation Camp and Casa Grande Transitional Housing, Ponder’s arrest report said.

“Ponder intentionally chooses women he knows and believes have limited opportunities due to their convictions and custody status within NDOC,” the arrest report stated. “He often uses personal information he gains through his position and specifically targets single mothers who are looking to maintain or regain custody of their children.”

The plaintiff’s account

The plaintiff alleged in the civil complaint that Ponder had used his ability to facilitate visitation with her children to groom her, knowing in her words that “There is nothing I wouldn’t do to see my children.”

The lawsuit alleged that Ponder’s interest in the plaintiff escalated from telling her he had a crush on her to then using a church program to harass and abuse her sexually.

“At nearly every service, usually at the end, Ponder would direct RS to ‘come in here with me so I can kiss you,’ and directed her into the closet with him to put the television away,” the complaint stated. “Inside the closet, out of view of any camera, Ponder kissed RS on the mouth, with his tongue in her mouth.”

At one point during her incarceration, the plaintiff was among a group of women taken to Hope for Prisoners’ headquarters to wrap gifts for a Christmas event, the lawsuit stated. She said Ponder took her into his office, out of view from corrections officers, and forced her to perform oral sex on him, the complaint stated.

After she was released from prison into residential confinement, Ponder’s advances did not stop, the complaint said, adding that he required her to perform sex acts on FaceTime at least twice and performed oral sex on her five times in his office while Hope for Prisoners staff were outside the door.

“Throughout this period, RS understood that Ponder could help or hurt her standing with the State, that her residential confinement could be revoked, and that he could help her get a job at Hope for Prisoners,” the lawsuit stated. “She feared that if she did not go along with Ponder’s demands, it would affect her release status and negatively harm her ability to remain out of prison.”

‘Brushed off and ignored’

Both the criminal and civil complaints also alleged that the Hope for Prisoners board was previously aware of allegations of sexual misconduct, with the organization’s legal counsel advising it to fire him in 2020.

As other employee complaints surfaced later, the civil lawsuit alleged that Hope for Prisoners “silenced” them.

Prison staff also relayed complaints about Ponder’s behavior to their superiors, only for them to be “brushed off and ignored,” the civil complaint said.

“Given HFP’s notice of Ponder’s sexual misconduct beginning in 2020, the reports it received in 2025, and the vulnerability of the women in its care, the risk that women in HFP’s custody and programs would be sexually abused by Ponder on HFP’s premises and at its events was foreseeable,” the lawsuit stated.

Contact Devan Patel at [email protected].