Pa. Dept. of Corrections: SCI Forest Inmate Sexually Harassing, Threatening Female Corrections Officers

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Published November 24, 2021 1:00 pm
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JENKS TWP., Pa. (EYT) — An inmate at SCI Forest is facing new charges for reportedly sexually harassing and threatening female corrections officers.

Court documents indicate the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections on November 18 filed criminal charges against 30-year-old Jermaine Christopher Hughes.

According to a criminal complaint, around noon on October 12, an agent of the Department of Corrections Bureau of Investigations and Intelligence met with a corrections officer regarding inappropriate/criminal behavior exhibited by Jermaine Hughes, who is currently an inmate at SCI Forest, toward female corrections officers.

The complaint notes the agent was informed that Hughes has a history of indecent exposure, targeting female officers, not only at SCI Forest, but also at other Pennsylvania SCI facilities. The agent was also provided with two misconduct reports that documented previous behavior of this type from Hughes.

According to the complaint, the first incident took place around 12:50 p.m. on September 30. A female corrections officer reported she was conducting rounds when she observed Hughes leaning on his bed performing a sex act on himself. During her next round, the officer passed Hughes’s cell again, and he reportedly yelled at her through his cell door, making an inappropriate comment about shoving his genitals down her throat. The officer finished her rounds, and as she was leaving the area, Hughes allegedly yelled “That’s right, get out of here (expletive)!”

The officer reported this because she felt threatened by Hughes’s comments, particularly since he reportedly assaulted two officers earlier the same day, according to the complaint.

The second incident took place around 6:30 p.m. on October 8.

According to the complaint, a second female corrections officer was on her rounds, and when she came to Hughes’s cell, she found him standing on his toilet, naked from the waist down, shaking his hips in her direction making his genitals move up and down. The officer ordered Hughes to stop and get dressed, but he reportedly refused, and then also refused the same order from a second corrections officer.

The agent, along with a corrections officer, also interviewed Hughes about the reported incidents.

During the interview, Hughes reportedly stated he understood it was a crime to do what he had done in the presence of female corrections officers and admitted he never did things of that nature “on the street.” He reportedly stated he had “urges” and got “horny” while incarcerated, then said he “gotta have someone watch him,” according to the complaint.

Hughes told the agent he knew that the female officers were coming around for rounds and would see him expose himself. When asked about the comments he made to the first officer, Hughes said he made the comments out of anger when he was called out about his behavior. He was subsequently advised that criminal charges would be filed and a conviction would prolong his sentence, to which he reportedly replied, “The consequences don’t matter. I’m not scared to do time,” and then compared what he did to smoking a cigarette, knowing that cancer is a consequence, according to the complaint.

The following charges were filed against Hughes through Judge Daniel L. Miller’s office on November 18:

– Terroristic Threats With Intent To Terrorize Another, Misdemeanor 1
– Indecent Exposure, Misdemeanor 2 (two counts)
– Disorderly Conduct/Grading, Misdemeanor 3 (two counts)

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. on December 14 with Judge Miller presiding.

Court documents indicate Hughes is currently serving a ten- to twenty-year sentence on attempted murder, aggravated assault, and firearms charges from an incident in Philadelphia County in 2012.

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