UPDATE: Former Washington Co. Jail officer sentenced to prison after having sex with inmate

UPDATE: 1/24/2019

A former corrections officer at the Washington County Jail is sentenced to 3-and-a-half years in prison after pleading guilty to sex crimes for having sex with a jail inmate in 2018.

Michelle Kiefer-Erb, 43, of Vincent, Ohio, is expected to serve her sentence at the Marysville, Ohio Reformatory for Women.

She also has to register as a Tier-3 Sex Offender.

In November, 2018, Kiefer-Erb pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual battery, after she admitted to investigators in August, 2018 that she had sex 4 separate times with a male inmate at the Washington County Jail.

On August 1, 2018, camera footage shows Kiefer-Erb taking a male inmate into the jail's medical office for approximately 14 minutes.

The next day, she is seen escorting the same inmate into the medical office for 30 minutes and later in the day for more than 20 minutes.

On August 10, 2018, she escorted that inmate into the medical office again and was observed by another officer who returned the inmate to his assigned housing unit.

Investigators discovered Kiefer-Erb did not document any kind of care in the inmate’s medical file or document anything on the medical log for those dates.

When questioned about it, she said she was stretching the inmate’s shoulder and did not know why it took so long.

She also cites being busy as the explanation for not documenting the treatments.

An investigation revealed the male inmate used another inmate’s phone account to call Kiefer-Erb on a pre-paid cell phone.

The investigation also revealed the inmate and Kiefer-Erb regularly expressed their love towards each other, engaged in phone sex, and discussed post prison marriage plans.

Detectives say Kiefer-Erb confessed to having sexual conduct with the inmate on 4 occasions while he was being held at the jail.

UPDATE: 11/16/18

A former corrections officer at the Washington County Jail is scheduled to be sentenced early next year for her guilty plea to two counts of sexual battery.

Michelle L. Kiefer-Erb, 43, of Vincent, Ohio, entered the plea on Thursday in Washington County Common Pleas Court.

Kiefer-Erb was charged with charged with four counts of third-degree sexual battery in August after sheriff's department investigators said she admitted to having four sexual encounters with a jail inmate.

According to court records, she could be sentenced to up to 60 months in prison for each count, along with a fine of up to $20,000.

She was released on a personal-recognizance bond, but is required to wear an ankle monitor until her sentencing, which is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Jan. 3.

UPDATE 8/20/18

Kiefer-Erb made her first court appearance Monday at Marietta Municipal Court.

The original bond of $200,000 was changed to $60,000 and a condition of house arrest was imposed. A preliminary hearing was set for Wednesday, August 22.

However, Kiefer-Erb chose to waive her preliminary hearing and have her bond modified to a $25,000 cash bond plus a personal recognizance bond.

Sheriff Mincks says she posted that bond late Monday and is now under house arrest at her mother's home in Veto.

The case has been bound over to Washington County Common Pleas Court.

ORIGINAL 8/19/18

A corrections officer at the Washington County Jail faces sexual battery charges after detectives say she admitted to having sexual conduct with an inmate.

Deputies say Michelle Lynn Kiefer-Erb, 42, was placed under arrest on Saturday and faces 4 counts of sexual battery, a third degree felony.

On August 1, camera footage shows Kiefer-Erb taking a male inmate into the jail's medical office for approximately 14 minutes.

The next day, she is seen escorting the same inmate into the medical office for 30 minutes and later in the day for more than 20 minutes.

On August 10, she escorted that inmate into the medical office again and was observed by another officer who returned the inmate to his assigned housing unit.

It was discovered that Kiefer- Erb did not document any kind of care in the inmate’s medical file or document anything on the medical log.

When questioned about it, she said she was stretching the inmate’s shoulder and did not know why it took so long.

She also cites being busy as the explanation for not documenting the treatments.

An investigation revealed the male inmate used another inmate’s phone account to call Kiefer-Erb on a pre-paid cell phone.

The investigation also revealed the inmate and Kiefer-Erb regularly expressed their love towards each other, engaged in phone sex, and discussed post prison marriage plans.

Detectives say Kiefer-Erb confessed to having sexual conduct with the inmate on 4 occasions while he was being held at the jail.

Sheriff Mincks tells us Kiefer-Erb has resigned from her position and is now being held at an undisclosed location.