Former Polk County Jail detainee sues over unwelcome sexual contact by employee

A former detainee is suing Polk County after he was sexually abused by a corrections officer.

Plaintiff Justin Mowery was incarcerated in the Polk County Jail from January to April 2022, according to his complaint. While he was working in the jail kitchen, he alleged, the employee supervising him repeatedly fondled and kissed him when he was in areas not in view of surveillance cameras, and threatened to file false complaints against him if he resisted her.

The jail employee, Brianna Miller, was charged in June 2022 with three counts of sexual misconduct with an offender. She pleaded guilty to three reduced charges of harassment and was sentenced in February to three days in jail and ordered to pay more than $300 in fines and other expenses.

In addition to Mowery's claims against Miller, the lawsuit alleges Polk County and Sheriff Kevin Schneider were negligent in her hiring, training and supervision.

Previously: Polk County to pay $86,500 after jail let man attempt suicide twice in three days

Attorney Erik Luthens, representing Mowery, said his client wants to have the harm Miller's actions caused recognized.

"Justin is looking forward to the Polk County Sheriff's Office finally acknowledging that one of its employees engaged in criminal conduct that negatively affected him," Luthens said in an email.

A Polk County spokesperson declined to comment, citing the pending litigation, but confirmed Miller was employed by the county from October 2021 to March 2022, when she was fired. Court filings do not list an attorney representing Miller who could comment on her behalf.

Other jail sex assault lawsuits settled

The latest lawsuit isn't the first Luthens has filed on behalf of prisoners over alleged sexual misconduct at the jail.

In 2020 and 2021, six current and former detainees represented by Luthens claimed that Dr. Michael Daly, a physician employed by the jail's medical contractor, had sexually assaulted them.

Claims against the county have been dismissed in five of those cases, either by the court or the plaintiffs. Luthens told the Register the plaintiffs settled their claims against Daly, one in September and the rest on Dec. 7, although not all those settlements are reflected yet in court filings. The settlement amounts are confidential, Luthens said.

Attorneys for Daly did not respond to a request for comment.

That leaves claims pending against Polk County in one case, in which the court previously dismissed claims against the sheriff but allowed claims to continue against another jail officer who also allegedly assaulted the plaintiff. Trial in that case is set for March 2024, and the county intends to defend all allegations, the spokesperson said.

William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at wrmorris2@registermedia.com, 715-573-8166 or on Twitter at @DMRMorris.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Polk County sued over jail employee's sexual assault against inmate