MONROE — A former corrections officer at the Washington State Reformatory in Monroe has been arrested on suspicion of having sex with an inmate while she was on duty.
Danette Skelton, 39, of Stanwood, was booked into the Snohomish County Jail on Wednesday for investigation of custodial sexual misconduct. An Everett District Court judge Thursday ruled that she would be released on her own recognizance.
Skelton is accused of having consensual sex at the prison with an inmate and told investigators she intends to continue the relationship. The judge ordered her to have no contact with the man.
Under state law, it is a felony for a corrections officer to have sex with inmates.
“We take allegations of sexual misconduct very seriously,” state Department of Corrections spokeswoman Belinda Stewart said.
According to court records, the officer began bringing home-cooked meals to the prisoner in 2009. The pair allegedly wrote notes and letters to each other, and she provided a cell phone to him and accepted about 23 phone calls.
The officer allegedly admitted using the alias “D. Onustack” in letters to the prisoner. A search of the inmate’s cell turned up four cards that appeared to come from the woman.
The inmate said he had sex with the corrections officer while she was on duty in the prison’s D-unit.
The officer also is accused of smuggling tobacco into the prison and receiving $50 for each of the roughly 15 deliveries.
Skelton began working at the prison in August 2002, according to court records. She resigned following a Department of Corrections investigation in December 2009.
The inmate is serving time for burglaries in King County, Stewart said. His earliest release date is March 2012. Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; estevick@heraldnet.com.
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