Nov 8, 2009 11:00 am US/Mountain
Uinta Co. Denies Responsibility In Jail Sex Case
BEN NEARY, Associated Press Writer
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) ―
Uinta County and its sheriff filed papers in federal court on Friday denying that they're responsible for the actions of a former county detention officer who was convicted of misdemeanor sexual battery against a woman inmate at the county jail.
The Utah woman filed a federal lawsuit against the county, County Sheriff Louis Napoli and former detention officer Todd Hoover in January. She claims that her civil rights were violated when Hoover forced her to have sex. The Associated Press doesn't identify victims of sexual assault and is not naming the woman who filed the lawsuit.
Hoover was fired on Jan. 12, 2007, for what Napoli then called "inappropriate sexual behavior." The woman was in the Uinta County jail for parts of December 2006 and January 2007.
Lincoln County Attorney Eric Phillips prosecuted Hoover. Hoover was convicted in late 2007 of two felony counts of delivering controlled substances to inmates in jail and of one misdemeanor count of sexual battery.
Melinda Brazzale, spokeswoman for the Wyoming Department of Corrections, said Hoover was paroled in July and discharged from parole in October.
Hoover, acting as his own attorney while still incarcerated, filed a response to the lawsuit in April denying the woman's allegations that he sexually assaulted her.
Phillips, Lincoln County attorney, said he prosecuted Hoover for the misdemeanor charge of sexual battery because no other state law then on the books covered the circumstances of the case.
"Nothing else really fit," Phillips said. "We didn't have that new law that specifically makes it a felony for someone who works in the jail to have any sort of sexual contact with someone who is an inmate."
Wyoming adopted a state law in 2007 that made it a felony for jailers or other corrections personnel to have sex with inmates regardless of whether the inmates give their consent. Phillips said he hasn't heard of another similar case since the law went into effect.
In her lawsuit, the woman states that Hoover and Napoli created an atmosphere at the jail where her submission to inappropriate behavior would allow her to receive extra benefits and privileges.
E. Dean Stout, Uinta County attorney, declined comment on the woman's lawsuit.
Cheyenne lawyer Richard Rideout represents Uinta County and Sheriff Napoli in his official capacity. An attempt to reach Rideout on Friday for comment on the case was unsuccessful.
Misha Westby, senior assistant attorney general, represents Napoli in his individual capacity. Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg declined comment on the case on Friday.
Rideout and Westby both filed responses to the woman's lawsuit on Friday.
In response to the woman's claims that Hoover sexually assaulted here, both Rideout and Westby say that the allegations aren't directed at the county or the sheriff so no response is necessary. To the extent that any of the woman's allegations are directed at their clients, Rideout and Westby say they deny them.
Jackson lawyer Mel Orchard represents the woman. Attempts to reach him for comment were unsuccessful.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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