A corrections officer is facing charges of sexual misconduct after engaging in sexual relationships with inmates she oversaw at a California jail.
Melanie Alicia Martin, 34, was arrested Saturday following an investigation into her conduct at Modoc County Jail. Fellow staff had reported Martin over her behavior, triggering the Modoc County Sheriff’s Office to enlist a third party to investigate, according to a Monday press release. As a result, she was fired from her position as a corrections officer.
“The Modoc County Sheriff’s Office is taking this alleged allegation of sexual misconduct very seriously,” Sheriff Tex Dowdy said.
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“Penal code 289.6 is the California statute that prohibits certain people from engaging in sexual activity with an inmate. Those people include correctional officers,” the press release reads. “An inmate cannot consent to sex if confined in a detention facility.”
“An employee or officer of a public entity health facility, or an employee, officer or agent of a private person or entity that provides a health facility or staff for a health facility under contract with a public entity, who engages in sexual activity with a consenting adult who is confined in a health facility is guilty of a public offense,” the code reads.
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Martin has been booked at her former place of employment, Modoc County Jail, on $20,000 bond.
