California prison guard sentenced for smuggling phones to inmates in exchange for money
A former California prison guard was sentenced Thursday to 25 months in federal prison for accepting bribes to smuggle cellphones to inmates at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville.
Stephen Joseph Crittenden, 44, pleaded guilty in April to one count of bribery in connection with the case. Prosecutors said that from 2021 to 2023, he accepted bribes totaling more than $45,000 from inmates seeking access to cellphones in the prison. He was initially charged with two counts of bribery, but that was dropped to one count after his guilty plea.
“Crittenden abused the trust placed in correctional officers by repeatedly taking bribes to smuggle contraband into a prison,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert. “Today’s sentence reflects the seriousness of his abuse of trust and should deter other correctional officers from engaging in the same conduct.”
Crittenden’s lawyers argued in court documents that he started accepting bribes to smuggle in cellphones as a way to investigate other criminal activity in the prison, and that he immediately regretted his decision. After his actions were discovered and he was fired, Crittenden felt relief and ultimately sought mental health treatment, federal defender Megan Hopkins said in court documents related to the sentencing.
Crittenden was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Sacramento by federal judge Troy Nunley.
This story was originally published December 5, 2024 at 12:50 PM.
