County jail officer to become an inmate

He dreamed of working in law enforcement and then spent a decade as a King County corrections officer.

Now, Louis G. Laurencio, 46, will experience jail from the other side.

On Friday, Laurencio was sentenced to four months in jail after pleading guilty to inappropriately touching a female inmate and photographing one of her breasts.

Despite the guilty plea, Laurencio maintained his innocence during the sentencing, telling King County Superior Court Judge Charles Mertel that he "never contemplated committing such acts" and always adhered to the rules of a job he was proud to have.

His attorney, Michael Danko, asked the judge for a deferred sentence, in which Laurencio would not have to serve jail time.

Mertel didn't agree. He ordered a 12-month jail sentence, with all but four months suspended.

"This crime violates so many things," Mertel said. "The position of trust that you're placed in and the vulnerability of the people under your control. At a time when so many of our institutions are questioned, you bring ... the system of justice into distrust, scorn."

Laurencio will likely serve the time in a municipal jail; his attorney has about 30 days to find somewhere other than a King County Jail to house him.

He is one of three King County corrections officers charged with custodial sexual misconduct for inappropriate behavior with female inmates.

Cedric McGrew, who coerced an inmate to perform oral sex, is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 15. Harland Richmond, accused of exposing himself to women and of later having sex with two female inmates, is scheduled for a second trial soon. His first trial ended in a mistrial in August when the jury failed to agree on a verdict.

A report released two weeks ago found that a sexualized working environment, meager training and poor communication are among the root causes of the string of sexual-misconduct allegations against corrections officers with the King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention.

Laurencio's victim did not make a statement at the sentencing. Deputy Prosecutor Roger Rogoff told the judge the crime was particularly egregious because the inmate had to overcome a jail culture of fear and shame and the likelihood of being labeled a snitch in order to come forward to report the misconduct.

Laurencio was responsible for "the safety and punishment of the people we send there ... and that's what we have lost," Rogoff told the judge.

The allegations against Laurencio and McGrew surfaced in April 2005 after the female inmate who became Laurencio's victim was transferred from the King County Jail in Seattle to the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor, according to charging papers. The woman told investigators that over the course of several weeks McGrew and Laurencio made sexually suggestive comments to her, the papers say.

She accused Laurencio of shoving her against a wall and putting his hand down her pants. The woman later wore a hidden recording device for police and taped statements from the officers that corroborated the allegations, according to charging papers.

Natalie Singer: 206-464-2704 or nsinger@seattletimes.com