Original Article Posted on Fri, Jan. 14, 2005 Five more guards indicted for alleged abuse at girls' prison Associated Press DELAWARE, Ohio - Five more guards at Ohio's only juvenile prison for girls have been indicted, bringing the total to 10 guards accused in the last two months of harming inmates. The charges were filed in Delaware County Common Pleas Court on Thursday. They accuse the guards of assault, sexual molestation and dereliction of duty. Also, another charge of sexual battery was filed Thursday against former guard Cardinal Paige, 47, who was one of five guards indicted in December on similar charges. None of the guards are currently working at Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility, located about 15 miles north of Columbus. "This is a lot of wrongdoing for one institution," Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost said. "There is a culture among some juvenile corrections officers that they have absolute authority and are unaccountable." The Ohio Department of Youth Services, which operates Scioto and the state's other seven juvenile prisons, has faced several problems in the past year, including some lawsuits filed by child-advocacy groups and the firing of former director Geno Natalucci-Persichetti. A special grand jury investigating abuse allegations has been meeting since October and continues to meet. "Among some people there was a code of silence - that's how this happened," Yost said. "The administration in Columbus is right to be concerned and right to be making changes." Tom Stickrath, interim director of the Department of Youth Services, said his office has been working with investigators and the new indictments were expected. "It's a difficult day for the agency," Stickrath said. "It does help re-enforce the need for the change." One guard indicted Thursday said she's innocent. "I don't know who is guilty of what; this is a witch hunt," said Cinda Thacker, 57, of Columbus, who was charged with helping another guard cover up an alleged assault. The other additional guards indicted Thursday were Andrew Baker Jr., 48, of Obetz; Robert Reynolds, 32, of Powell; Timothy Underdown, 44, of Columbus and Dawne Franklin, 37, of Columbus. http://www.nbc4i.com/news/4079592/detail.html Six More Indicted In Juvenile Prison Probe All Were Juvenile Corrections Officers At Facility UPDATED: 1:43 PM EST January 13, 2005 DELAWARE, Ohio -- Six additional indictments were handed down Thursday by a grand jury into allegations of sexual and physical abuse at the Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility. Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost said that all those indicted Thursday were juvenile corrections officers at the facility at the time of the offenses alleged in the indictment. The grand jury has been meeting since October, and has now examined 55 witnesses and indicted ten corrections officers and one youth for criminal misconduct, Yost said. The indictments include: Andrew L. Baker Jr., 48, of Obetz, for alleged sexual assaults on two female inmates at the institution during May 2004 and on June 25, 2004. Charges include one count of sexual battery, a third degree felony, and three counts of sexual imposition, third degree misdemeanors. Robert B. Reynolds, 32, of Powell, for an alleged February 2004 assault on a male inmate. Charges include one count of endangering children, a third degree felony, one count of assault, a first degree misdemeanor, one count of falsification, also a first degree misdemeanor, and dereliction of duty, a second degree misdemeanor. Cinda Thacker, 57, of Columbus, for her part in allegedly helping cover up an assault by Stanley Gates on a female inmate in late December 2003. Thacker is charged with tampering with evidence, a third degree felony, obstructing justice, a fifth degree felony, falsification and dereliction of duty. Timothy Underdown, 44, of Columbus, for alleged sexual misconduct with a female inmate on Feb. 3, 2004. He is charged with one count of endangering children, a second degree felony, one count of illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material or performance, a fifth degree felony, and public indecency, a fourth degree misdemeanor. Dawne L. Franklin, 37, of Columbus, for an alleged November 2004 assault on a female inmate. She is charged with two counts of endangering children, both third degree felonies, and assault. In addition, the grand jury issued a new indictment against Cardinal Paige, who had previously been indicted, Yost said. The new indictment adds an additional charge of sexual battery against a female inmate. http://www.10tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2809052 Delaware County Five other officers at the Scioto Correctional Facility were indicted in December. Thursdays indictments brought the total to 10 correctional workers at the girls lockup facing criminal charges. All the alleged criminal acts happened within the past year. Among the accused, Andrew Baker is charged with sexual assaults on two female inmates, ages 17 and 14. Timothy Underdown is accused of sexual misconduct with a female inmate, among other things. And Cinda Thacker is in trouble for allegedly covering up for fellow officer Stanley Gates, who was indicted last month. "One of the things we've heard over and over again: snitches get stitches. And there is a sense that you need to keep your mouth shut, Delaware County prosecutor Dave Yost said. But Yost says that climate is as unacceptable as what he believes others did to underage girls who literally had no way out. Dawne Franklin is charged with assaulting a female inmate. Robert Reynolds faces charges for assaulting a male inmate in the juvenile system. Reynolds was fired last May. "In some of these cases, what were dealing with is juvenile corrections officers who reacted to verbal abuse. It's not appropriate in these cases. It's criminal," Yost said. A new charge was filed Thursday against Cardinal Paige, who was indicted in December for sexually abusing two female inmates. Now, the Delaware County grand jury has added a charge of sexually battery to the crimes Paige is accused of. "These defendants not only violated the children, they violated the community's larger trust," described Yost. 10TV attempted to reach each of the accused on Thursday. The station was unable to obtain any comments on the charges that officers face. The Department of Youth Services interim director said Thursday's indictments continue to reinforce the need for changes in hiring, training and other personnel areas. A new warden is scheduled to take over January 18 at Scioto Correctional