Former South Carolina Department of Corrections employee Jameelah Fortune was sentenced to 10 years for smuggling drugs into a state prison and engaging in a relationship with an inmate, according to an announcement from Attorney General Alan Wilson. Judge Heath Taylor ordered Fortune to serve seven years in prison followed by three years of probation.
Fortune had pleaded guilty on July 28, with sentencing deferred until the hearing held today.
“My office will continue to work closely with the Department of Corrections to keep contraband out of our prisons, whether it’s drugs or cell phones that inmates use to continue committing crimes while they’re behind bars,” said Attorney General Wilson.
The case began when correctional staff at the South Carolina Department of Corrections seized a contraband cellphone from inmate Ancel Harris. The phone contained thousands of messages between Harris and Fortune, as well as other evidence pointing to criminal activity. Harris faces criminal charges for his alleged involvement in the conspiracy and is awaiting trial.
“People who are sworn to uphold the law should be held to a higher standard when they break that trust,” said Joel E. Anderson, Interim Director of the S.C. Department of Corrections. “This woman conspired with inmates to commit crimes and flood our institutions with deadly illegal drugs. After today, she will have an inmate number instead of an employee badge.”
Special Agent Trevor Sherbert from the SCDC-OIG Major Crimes and Public Corruption Unit led the investigation, and Margaret Scott from the South Carolina Department of Corrections Criminal Prosecution Division prosecuted the case.
