HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — The attorney for a sergeant at the Harris County Jail who says she was sexually assaulted by an inmate says more needs to be done to protect the people that work in the jail.
Richard Presutti, the attorney representing the woman, said its still hard for his client to talk about what she went through.
"She's not doing very well, the last year and a half has been terribly painful for her," he said. "She's an honorable woman that loved her job, did a great job at her job, this was totally unnecessary."
The incident happened in late 2021. Now, almost two years later, she's suing Harris County.
KHOU 11 has reached out to several county officials this week about the incident, including the county attorney's office, Judge Lina Hidalgo and Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. They all said they cannot comment on pending litigation.
"When is enough enough, what else has to happen down there?" Presutti asked.
The accused inmate, Jeremiah Williams, has been charged in the attack. Presutti said the biggest red flag in their case was a report that Williams was wandering the halls of the jail by himself on the way back from bible study.
"This inmate, who was supposed to be an inmate who would never travel alone anywhere in the jail, and that's because he would be identified by having a purple wristband was not escorted," Presutti explained.
The lawsuit claims the issues are nothing new and that the jail has been involved in legal battles since the '70s.
Presutti said his client has served with the sheriff's office for 23 years and hopes to be a catalyst for change.
"This should be a wakeup call to our elected officials to do something and fund the jail adequately," he said.
We've asked the sheriff's office about the purple wristbands in question. A spokesperson said they are still in use. They said the inmate was wearing one that day because of the previous sexual assault charges he was facing.