16, 2020, but rearrested on March 5, 2020, on a probation violation and placed back at the downtown jail. The inmate was released from jail on Feb. “I was concerned for my parents’ safety.” He reported the letter immediately, sending an email to a supervisor, under the subject: “Inmate stalking me.” The letter was sexually explicit and racist, according to Ryan W., who is Asian American. out of fear of further harassment, said a letter arrived at his parents’ home, where he lives. The nurse, who asked to be identified as Ryan W. The supervisor wrote to Norton: “I want to help you as best as I can, however, the only thing I can do as a manager is prevent contact here in the jail” between Norton and the inmate.Īnother nurse at the Multnomah County Detention Center also received letters from the inmate. The supervisor didn’t explain why in the email, and county officials wouldn’t comment further. In an email to Norton in January 2020, a county corrections health supervisor wrote that county attorneys had advised that jail staff aren’t allowed to confiscate outgoing mail from inmates. Norton is now suing his bosses in federal court, claiming their alleged negligence subjected him to a hostile work environment and sexual harassment at the Multnomah County Detention Center, a maximum-security jail that has a capacity of 448 adults and is located inside Portland’s downtown Justice Center. Norton said he and his roommate ended up moving out of their apartment to escape the barrage. A judge wouldn’t grant a stalking order.įrom November 2019 through March 2020, Norton received about 40 letters, he said. County authorities said they couldn’t stop the inmate from mailing the letters.

The inmate wrote in graphic detail of wanting to have sex with Norton. Tommie Norton, a registered nurse working at the downtown jail in Portland, was stunned to return home from work one day and find a long handwritten letter in the mail addressed to him from an inmate.

Phillips multnomah county jail roster