Prison guard faces jail time after accepting bribes to smuggle goods inside
The California Medical Center at California Medical Facility is seen on Thursday, August 4, 2011 in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo By Lea Suzuki/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
SUISUN CITY, Calif. - A correctional officer from Suisun City pleaded guilty to taking bribes from inmates to smuggle in cellphones, U.S. Attorney Phillip Talbert said.
Stephen Crittenden, 44, was a prison guard at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, a medium security state prison. From 2021 through 2023, he accepted bribes totaling more than $45,000 from inmates who wanted him to smuggle in cellphones, prosecutors said.
Crittenden pleaded guilty to bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds and is scheduled to be sentenced in September. He is facing a maximum of ten years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
lede00_002_pc.jpg A prison guard escorts a prisoner down a hallway at the California Medical Facility on 10/27/05 in Vacaville, Calif., a state prison where many of the state's sickest inmates are sent for medical treatment. The prison houses a hospi