HAMILTON, Ohio — Felony charges have been dropped against the then-17-year-old Butler Tech intern who was accused of smuggling items into the Butler County Jail during her internship in March.
The female Butler Tech student was charged in juvenile court with two felony counts of illegal conveyance into a detention facility, a misdemeanor charge of the same crime and misdemeanor obstructing official business, according to court documents.
The two felony counts of illegal conveyance into a detention facility charges have been dropped.
The internship program that places Butler Tech students in the Butler County Jail for job training was paused after a national conservative podcaster released information involving the intern's contact with two inmates that allegedly included smuggling and sex.
Officials said the program could resume in the fall.
The intern, who turned 18 in June, was accused of bringing marijuana, ecstasy and cell phones into the facility on two occasions, according to court documents. She was also accused of being less than truthful to investigators during the investigation that led to a lockdown of the inmate pod.
Her attorneys alleged in a motion filed in May the only evidence police have against her is her own confession, which they claim was coerced during a four-hour-long interrogation in which the teen was not provided the opportunity to contact a parent, guardian or legal council.
Attorney Joe Auciello, who represents the female charged, said, “I was just surprised that the internship program was running with juveniles in the jail.”
Auciello filed the motion to have the teen's interview with police suppressed, citing her rights had been violated; That motion was denied on June 20, according to court documents.
Court documents say the intern also told deputies that she was offered money through Cash App to bring the items into the jail, but the sheriff's office never found the Cash App on her phone.
Butler County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Anthony Dwyer said the intern admitted to consensual sex with an inmate, but no one has been charged with any sex-related offense in the matter.
“If she was three months older and we hired her as an 18-year-old, she would have been charged criminally with a sexual assault because you are in control,” Dwyer said, explaining she wasn’t charged because she wasn’t a sheriff’s office employee.
Dwyer said the inmates were not charged with breaking any jail rules or crimes for the contraband she allegedly brought in.
During a search of the pod, investigators did not find any cell phones or evidence of drugs or drug wrappers.
The “Louder with Crowder” podcast and website first reported the incidents on June 19, saying inmates coerced the intern into smuggling items into the jail and groomed her for sex. The report also was critical of the sheriff’s office and school district for accountability about the program.
Dwyer said the intern was one of about half a dozen from Butler Tech to go through the program as an unpaid intern. Dwyer noted they recently hired an 18-year-old graduate as a corrections officer.
Dwyer said the intern was never alone in the jail pod, which is less than the size of a basketball court.
“There was a CO with her,” Dwyer said. “She was in a pod where an officer was, and when the officer was making rounds, she dipped into a cell. She made an effort to participate.”
Butler Tech responds
A.J. Huff, Butler Tech spokeswoman, said the program was suspended and will be re-evaluated.
“We did suspend the program at the time because obviously, she didn’t continue there,” Huff said. “Each fall there is a discussion of who we partner with and what businesses in all programs, and what the right fit is for the student we have each year. So that will have to be a conversation that we have once we are back in session.”
She said before students begin an internship program — whether it is with the sheriff, a welding company or a fire department, “because we do have business partners that could be potentially dangerous,” — students must pass all the necessary assessments, plus meet grade and attendance requirements. Students and parents have responsibilities that are spelled out in a signed agreement, Huff said.
In March, the sheriff’s department received information from someone in the facility that a corrections officer was bringing in contraband and engaging in sex with a prisoner, according to Dwyer. The investigation pointed to the intern, whom he said inmates did not know was not a staff corrections officer.
Through an investigation, including reviews of phone calls and cell phone data, detectives questioned her and filed charges. Dwyer said she “admits to bringing contraband in and admits to consensual sexual activity with one of the inmates.”
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