Five former female Monroe County Jail inmates are suing Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn, former corrections worker, Sergeant Robert Wilson, and Monroe County for criminal sex acts committed by Wilson.
Each of the women was a victim of sex crimes while they were inmates in the Monroe County Jail.
In June, Wilson was sentenced to six months in prison and ten years of probation after pleading guilty to more than twenty crimes involving seven female victims who were inmates. The crimes included rape, sexual abuse, and official misconduct. The sex crimes occurred over a period of more than two years, ending in July 2012.
As part of his sentence, Wilson is also required to register as a Level 2 sex offender.
The lawsuit details numerous sexual encounters from 2010 to 2012 between Wilson and the five women. Each occurred while they were inmates at the Brighton women’s facility.
In one case, a plaintiff contends Wilson encouraged her “to strip tease in her cell while he watched” and later “directed” her to perform oral sex.
In another case, a plaintiff alleged Wilson called her away from the cellblock for “unscheduled medical appointments” and “lead her into an unoccupied office” where he engaged “in personal, flirtatious and sexually explicit conversation.” Plaintiff later claims Wilson directed her to “write sexually explicit letters to him, which, she did” and “Wilson wrote a sexually explicit letter” back to her.
That same plaintiff also claims Wilson took her to his Spencerport apartment after she was released and “tried to force” her to have sex “but allowed her to give him oral sex instead.” She also claims Wilson “continued to stalk” her in phone calls, “proposed sex, including sex for money and sex with other participants.” She claims he “frequented, at an unreasonable rate, the salon where she was employed at and demanded that she cut his hair.”
Another plaintiff claims Wilson entered her jail cell, sat on her bunk, and “directed her to show him her breasts.”
Another plaintiff claims Wilson called her out into a hallway because he had cleaning for her to do but “instead of cleaning” Wilson took her to a private room where he had sex with her.
According to the civil complaints, instead of a proper investigation of his alleged actions, or inadequate training, supervision or oversight of Wilson while on the job, he was able to continuously sexually abuse women by creating false excuses to be alone with the women and then take them to unoccupied areas of the jail for sexual intercourse, oral sex and other unwanted sexual contact, using his power and authority to intimidate them.
In each of the lawsuits, the plaintiffs claim that “other members of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office allowed Sergeant Wilson to be alone with” the women. One plaintiff claims that the Sheriff’s Office was “alerted to the inappropriate relationship” and “did not investigate.” The complaint claims that O’Flynn and the county did not adequately protect the women inmates after they were made aware of Wilson’s “inappropriate relationship” with a female inmate in July 2010.
According to that plaintiff’s lawsuit, “If they did investigate, the investigation was not sufficient” and the office “did not take action to remedy the situation and prevent further harm”.
The lawsuits allege violations of the victim’s constitutional rights to due process, liberty, and their rights to be “free from cruel and unusual punishment.” Allegations of “inadequate training and supervision” were also made against Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn and Monroe County.
Wilson pleaded guilty to sexual abuse at the Monroe County Correctional Facility on April 8, 2013.
The plea stems from a 21-count indictment filed days earlier.
Each of the women is seeking jury trials and unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, reasonable attorney’s fees and other remedies from the court.
What do you think about the Sheriff using his position of authority to take advantage of these women? Why was this Sheriff allowed to commit these crimes over and over without anyone following through on the complaints made?
Feel free to comment on this blog post. For more information you can contact one of our Gacovino Lake attorneys at 1-800-246-HURT (4878).
