Former correctional officer charged with conspiracy to commit sodomy with inmate

A woman formerly employed as a correctional officer with the Russell County Jail was arrested late Tuesday night after she allegedly planned to help commit a sodomy act involving a female inmate.

Russell County Sheriff Heath Taylor said Donna Michelle Ridgeway, who served as a correctional officer for approximately four years, was terminated after she had a conversation with an inmate in which she encouraged the inmate to potentially “get herself out of jail” by “getting a deputy or someone to do something with that inmate.”

Taylor said they launched an internal investigation into the incident about two weeks ago, which is when the inmate reported the incident to authorities. Officials said they were able to review a portion of that alledged “inappropriate” conversation captured on a recording device, but the sheriff declined to comment further about what was allegedly said.

“We believe that the evidence will show that Ms. Ridgeway engaged in conversation and committed an overt act in helping a potential crime take place,” he said. “Of course that never occurred, because (we) were running the investigation.”

Taylor said he’s pleased that the inmate was honest enough to report the incident immediately after it happened but disappointed that Ridgeway “crossed the line.”

“We would be wrong if we didn’t address it,” the sheriff said. “You have to address it, and you have to hit it head-on. I think that the public expects that and deserves that.”

The correctional officers are trained to avoid developing any type of personal relationships with the inmates, such as telling them private information about their lives.

“I think that we do everything we can to explain and teach the correctional officers that they can’t get involved with inmates on a personal level,” Taylor said. “Sometimes, we can’t stop it.”

Ridgeway, 48, of Phenix City was charged with first-degree conspiracy to commit sodomy. She was booked into the Russell County Jail under a $7,500 bond but will be housed in the Lee County Jail for saftey reasons, officials said.

Sarah Robinson: 706-571-8622, @sarahR_92

This story was originally published March 16, 2016 at 12:25 PM with the headline "Former correctional officer charged with conspiracy to commit sodomy with inmate."