By Roselee Papandrea
The Burlington Times-News
BURLINGTON, N.C. — An Alamance County jail officer was charged Wednesday with providing marijuana to an inmate who is accused of shooting a Lee County Sheriff’s deputy in Burlington in January.
Jo Ann Hensley, 58, of Mebane, who has worked as a detention officer for five years, was charged with providing drugs to an inmate. She was placed under a $2,500 unsecured bond and has a first appearance in Alamance County District Court Thursday, according to an Alamance County Sheriff’s Department news release.
Hensley is no longer employed by the sheriff’s department, the release states.
The sheriff’s department received information that Hensley allegedly provided “prohibited items” to inmate between Aug. 11 and Aug. 13.
“An investigation was initiated, and it was determined that she had apparently delivered prohibited items and additionally provided a small quantity of marijuana,” the release states.
The other prohibited items were “tobacco products,” which aren’t allowed at the jail, said Randy Jones, sheriff’s department spokesman.
The inmate, Jean Christopher Jerez, 18, of Graham, has been in jail under $2 million bond since Jan. 11 on charges of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. Jerez, Jose Antonio Morales and Marcus Lee Thompson allegedly robbed Charles Dew, an undercover Lee County Sheriff’s deputy of $17,500 and then shot him in the leg at about 3 p.m. Jan. 11 on Anthony Street in Burlington.
At the time, Jerez, Morales and Thompson didn’t know Dew was an undercover officer who was on Anthony Street with a lot of backup because both Lee County and Alamance County sheriff’s departments were working together on a drug operation. Jerez and Thompson were immediately caught by deputies.
Morales was confronted by Lee County deputies behind a residence on Anthony Street. Shots were fired and Morales was hit in the face and leg. Morales was taken to UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill. Dew was treated and released at Alamance Regional Medical Center Jan. 11.
Morales is now in jail under $4 million bond and Thompson is under $2 million bond, according to a jail log.
Jerez is expected to be served with a warrant in jail today charging him with possession of a controlled substance on jail premises, according to a press release.
It wasn’t immediately known whether Hensley resigned from her position or was fired. She is the fifth Alamance County jail officer to leave her position this year under scrutiny.
In April, jail detention officer James Bernard Stutts Jr. resigned and Lt. Gerry Steven Helms as well as officers Hugh Atkins Thacker and Jason Lee Neal were fired after a juvenile was “improperly handled” during a tour of the jail on a Saturday evening.
According to information released by the sheriff’s department at the time, the boy, who was brought to the jail by a family member, was “improperly restrained and possibly assaulted.” The detention officers were investigated by the SBI after the incident.
District Attorney Rob Johnson said he still hasn’t received a report from the SBI. He called the SBI last week to ask about it, and he was told that agents are in the process of getting it typed up, Johnson said.
“Once I get it, I will go through it and view it and will make some decision and go from there,” Johnson said.
Copyright 2008 The Burlington Times-News