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Brett Robinson (left) and Jill Curry (right) are accused of custodial sexual misconduct involving the same Washington County Jail inmate.
(WCSO)
A Washington County Jail worker has been arrested on accusations of having sex with the same inmate as her coworker, according to the sheriff's office.
Brett Robinson, 32, turned herself in Tuesday evening after a grand jury indicted her on six counts of first-degree custodial sexual misconduct, a felony, and six counts of first-degree official misconduct, a misdemeanor.
The arrest comes a little more than a month after the arrest of fellow civilian worker Jill Curry, 38, on similar charges involving the same inmate and prompted Sheriff Pat Garrett to commit to taking swift action in response to the "extraordinarily serious" allegations.
Sgt. Bob Ray, a sheriff's office spokesman, said authorities learned of Robinson's conduct July 28 during the Curry investigation.
Robinson, who has worked at the sheriff's office since January 2013, was placed on paid administrative leave after returning from her weekend July 30. The next day, she was placed on unpaid leave "based upon information received during the ongoing investigation and the seriousness of the charges," according to the sheriff's office.
The agency did not specify how it learned of the alleged conduct, or release details regarding how or where the alleged crimes occurred. All that has been said is that Robinson "had engaged in criminal activity related to her official duties while working in the Washington County Jail."
The Multnomah County Sheriff's Office is leading the criminal investigation.
"I consider allegations that involve a second Jail staff member in this case extraordinarily serious," Garrett said in a statement. "Addressing these issues demands immediate changes and a thorough, holistic review of protocols within the jail – both efforts are underway. Safety and security of jail staff and inmates remains a very high priority. I am very thankful to investigators from the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office and the Oregon State Police for their excellent work on this case."
The Washington County Sheriff's Office said it will review jail operations, at the conclusion of these criminal cases. That review team will include members of an outside agency.
Ray would not specify what immediate changes have occurred at the jail, except to say, "There has been enhanced supervision at all places, at all times."
Curry and Robinson are jail services technicians and work in various areas of the jail, including booking, inmate units and the control center. Authorities also haven't specified where Curry's alleged crimes occurred.
"We believe that they took advantage of specific locations at specific times," Ray said Tuesday.
Investigators, he said, do not believe the women knew of one another's activities with the inmate.
"They did this behavior independent of each other," Ray said.
The inmate, who's listed as a victim in the two cases, is in custody on charges tied to four separate cases. He is accused of tampering with a witness, sexual harassment, failure to register as a sex offender, false swearing, harassment, second-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon, according to jail records.
The inmate testified before a Washington County grand jury in Curry's case, court records show. A copy of Robinson's indictment was not immediately available.
Curry was arrested July 16 on a dozen counts of first-degree custodial sexual misconduct and first-degree official misconduct. She was released after posting $12,000 in bail.
On July 28, she was arraigned on 28 counts. The additional charges, stemming from a July 23 indictment, included second-degree custodial sexual misconduct and identity theft. She was again booked into jail and released. She did not have to post additional bail, according to the sheriff's office.
Curry, an agency employee since 2004, is married to a deputy. He filed for divorce after her arrest, records show.
Authorities have released very few details about the allegations involving Curry. A probable cause affidavit has remained sealed because of an ongoing investigation, authorities have said.
According to the sheriff's office, the Curry investigation began July 8 after a complaint was filed with the agency's professional standards unit. Curry was on vacation at the time and placed on administrative leave that day.
Ray, the sheriff's office spokesman, said the agency started an internal inquiry, found possible criminal conduct and asked Multnomah County to investigate.
Due to the severity of the accusations and strong evidence in the case, Ray said, Curry was put on unpaid leave July 23, when her vacation ended. She was indicted the same day.
The indictment alleged that Curry had sex with an inmate numerous times between May 25 and July 3. It also said she used someone else's name to send mail and money to an inmate.
The Washington County Jail, located at 215 S.W. Adams Ave. in Hillsboro, is a 572-bed facility.
The Washington County Jail is a 572-bed facility that operates at capacity year round, according to the sheriff's office. About 18,000 people annually are booked into the jail, which is located at 215 S.W. Adams Ave. in Hillsboro.
The jail employs more than 180 people, of whom roughly 136 are sworn corrections deputies. The rest of the staff is made up of civilian workers, including jail services technicians and medical personnel, according to the sheriff's office.
Jail services technicians are tasked with completing administrative and "technical-level security tasks" inside the jail, according to a general job description. They work in inmate booking, records, property control, master control-room operation and control-room operation in the jail's maximum security unit, known as Pod 3.
While working the master control center position, jail services technicians regulate where inmates and other employees move throughout the facility. At that post, they control doors throughout the jail. The entire facility has more than 800 doors, according to the sheriff's office.
In the main control center, jail services technicians also monitor surveillance footage on screens that flip through the jail's more than 200 cameras.
Applicants for the jail services technician positions must pass a criminal and personal background investigation, psychological evaluation and drug test, according to the county.
Emily E. Smith of The Oregonian contributed to this report.
-- Rebecca Woolington