TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

A detention deputy accused of sexually related crimes against female inmates at Lerdo Jail admitted in an interview with a Sheriff's Department investigator that he touched one of the women in a sexual manner, according to an investigation report filed in Kern County Superior Court.

Anthony Michael Lavis, 55, is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday on charges of sexual penetration with force, three counts of assault by a public officer and three counts of intimate touching against a person's will. He was arrested Feb. 11.

Lavis could not be reached for comment Monday. John Ramirez, the attorney representing Lavis in any administrative action he might face, said he didn't know who was representing Lavis in the criminal case.

The investigation report says when confronted by investigators about the allegations of one of the inmates, Lavis at first denied talking to the woman in a sexual nature or touching her. An investigator told Lavis that the woman in question had worn a wire and there was video surveillance of the two.

Lavis then said he'd touched the woman but it was consensual, the investigation report says. He said he only touched the woman over her clothing and if a DNA test was performed, his DNA would be found on her boxer shorts but not on her skin.

The investigator at one point said Lavis was being vague in his answers, and Lavis said that's because he had been accused of sexual assault in another county several years ago, the Investigation report says. Lavis said he was detained for several days and questioned but eventually released, the investigation report says.

Near the end of the interview Lavis said he couldn't understand how he had gotten into this situation, according to the investigation report. He said he was manipulated by the woman.

Investigators say Lavis had inappropriate contact with several women at the Lerdo facility. The incidents first came to the attention of deputies Oct. 15 when one of the women said Lavis touched her while she was in the shower, investigators said.

Audio and video surveillance equipment was installed in the woman's cell, and the audio equipment recorded conversation of a sexual nature between Lavis and the woman, according to a probable cause declaration filed in court. Several other women said Lavis had acted inappropriately with them, the court records say.

Some of the women said Lavis told them no one would believe them if they complained about his behavior, the investigation report says. He told one inmate if she said anything he would have her "buried," the investigation report says.

Other detention deputies noticed Lavis acting inappropriately. A female detention deputy told an investigator she talked to Lavis several times because his behavior around female inmates made her uncomfortable, the investigation report says.

Lavis would flirt with the inmates and when taking their booking photos sometimes tell inmates to "pose for the camera" and turn a fan in the room so it would blow their hair, according to the investigation report. That detention deputy said she never heard Lavis make any sexual comments or touch anyone in a sexual manner.

Lavis' arrest came about a month after the Sheriff's Department arrested Detention Deputy Margarita Young on charges of having unlawful sex at Lerdo Jail with a Death Row inmate. Young has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for a pre-preliminary hearing March 23.

The two cases prompted Sheriff Donny Youngblood to promise changes in jail policies, including requiring supervisors to walk through the facilities and sign log records more often and transferring commanders so there would be a fresh set of eyes in different areas.