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PA Female Lt. Awarded $37,234 in Faulty Sex Termination

A female Lieutenant at the Allegheny County Jail was awarded $37,234 and
reinstated to her job after a County Personnel Board found she was
improperly terminated for allegedly having sex with a prisoner.

While in the Allegheny County Jail, prisoner Tyrone Becton was disciplined
by Lieutenant Robyn Griffin for having sex with jailed prostitutes. Becton
then accused Griffin, 45, of having sex with him. A new warden, Ramon
Rustin, was hired October 7, 2004, and he fired Griffin on November 22,
2004. The warden relied solely on Becton's word and conducted no
investigation of his own. "Never once, to this day, has anybody asked me,
'Did I do this?'" complained Griffin, a 16-year jail veteran. This has
been a horrible thing to have to live with.

On October 12, 2004, the Personnel Board found Becton's claim insufficient
to warrant Griffin's termination, in part because Becton had previously
lied to win privileges. Griffin's attorney claimed Becton's claim was
simply another attempt to game the system. The Board also questioned
Griffin's credibility, however, noting that she had been suspended for
abusing the jail's sick leave policy and for sleeping on the job.

Griffin's case was part of a wider grand jury probe into male guards
trading sex with female prisoners for cigarettes and other privileges.
Griffin claims other employees who disliked her used Becton's claims to get
back at her. She did not face criminal charges because her alleged
activities occurred before a state law was passed which made institutional
sexual assault illegal. Thirteen other guards were charged. Six have been
found, or have pleaded, guilty. Four were acquitted.

Griffin was reinstated to her previous position, had 36 days of paid
vacation days reinstated, and was awarded $37,234. Warden Rustin declined
comment.

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