The Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield. File photo by Andrew Nemethy
A nurse at one of Vermont’s largest correctional facilities is facing a criminal charge of sexual exploitation of an inmate.
Rebecca Parker, 39, of Springfield, is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 31-year-old male prisoner at Southern State Correctional Facility, where she worked as a dialysis nurse, according to the Vermont State Police.
A news release, issued Monday, said investigators with the state police were alerted to the possible relationship between Parker and the inmate by the Department of Corrections in February.
In the course of the investigation, police seized “a large amount” of information on exchanges between Parker and the prisoner by email and phone, police say.
Parker worked in the Springfield prison as an employee of Centurion Managed Care LLC, the company the Corrections Department contracts with to provide health care in the prisons.
According to Mike Touchette, director of correctional facilities for the DOC, Parker has not worked inside the Southern State Correctional Facility since February.
Touchette said Vermont’s policies on relationships between correctional facility workers and prisoners are in line with the Prison Rape Elimination Act, a federal law passed in 2003 that aims to reduce sexual abuse in corrections systems.
Touchette said sexual relationships between prison staff and inmates are problematic for several reasons.
“A person that’s incarcerated may make decisions that they normally would not make,” Touchette said.
Because Parker was employed by Centurion, not directly by the state, any internal investigation of a possible relationship was referred to the contractor, according to Touchette. Centurion staff are required to complete the same training on the Prison Rape Elimination Act that DOC staff members must complete, he said.
Instances of sexual relationships between staff and inmates do happen, Touchette said. He added that “they’re fairly infrequent where we have a substantiation” of an incident.
Parker was cited June 1. She is to appear in Windsor County criminal court in White River Junction on July 12 to face one count of sexual exploitation of an inmate, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $10,000.
Windsor County State’s Attorney David Cahill said documents will likely be filed in court in the next few weeks. Cahill declined to comment on the case.
Attempts to reach Parker for comment were unsuccessful.
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