Everett, WA — A Snohomish County Jail guard is off the job, charged with sexual misconduct with inmates.
Prosecutors said earlier this year, Sean Christopher Wright, 34, coerced an inmate into a supply closet in the Snohomish County Jail and forced her to perform a sex act. Afterward, according to charging papers, Wright told the woman if she said anything, he'd get fired and that would make life "real hard" for her.
Court documents also detail a pattern of inappropriate behavior by the deputy, who was hired at the jail in 2010.
Two inmates said Wright would talk to them about having sex and offered them special privileges such as cookies and extra time out of their jail cells if they let him watch while they showered or changed clothes. The allegations came to light last May when an inmate told detectives Wright was "trying to get her to hook up with him" when she got out of jail, the report claims.
She admitted having at least two sexual encounters with Wright and agreed to let him watch her shower because she wanted more recreation time out of her cell.
Police say Ruth Howlett-Zackuse, a cellmate of one of Wright's victims, told investigators she witnessed Wright take her cellmate into a supply closet. He also watched the woman shower.
Howlett-Zackuse was relieved to find out Wright was charged. "He shouldn't get away with it. He shouldn't have access to girls and take advantage of his authority," She said, adding that Wright knew she'd witnessed his behavior and told her, "Please don't say anything. This is my life, I have a family.
Wright has been under investigation for months and is on paid leave. He is scheduled to be arraigned in a few weeks.
Wright's father-in-law does not believe the accusations.
"I just don't see him doing that kind of things. It's not his personality. It just doesn't fit," said Thomas Dede. "He's a very nice young man. I'm glad he's my son-in-law. He's very helpful around the house."
Wright was in the National Guard and in the US Army Reserves. He served one year in Afghanistan.
In addition to the criminal investigation presented in court documents, the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office has also launched an internal investigation into Wright's alleged sexual relations with female inmates.
KIRO
