Federal Prison Officer Eric Todd Ellis Sexually Abused a Woman in His Custody, Then Tried to Cover It Up.

 

Federal Prison Officer Eric Todd Ellis Sexually Abused a Woman in His Custody

Eric Todd Ellis was a corrections officer with the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

His job gave him authority over incarcerated people.

He abused it.

In June 2020, while working at the Federal Correctional Institution in Aliceville, Alabama, Ellis engaged in a sexual act with a woman incarcerated at the facility.

Under federal law, incarcerated people cannot legally consent to sexual activity with correctional staff because of the inherent power imbalance.

But Ellis did more.

After admitting what he had done to another officer, he instructed that coworker to lie to federal investigators to help cover it up.

In 2021, Ellis pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a ward and witness tampering.

He was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release.

He was supposed to protect the people placed under his authority.

Instead, he sexually abused one of them and tried to cover it up.