A San Francisco deputy sheriff has been charged with battery and assault for allegedly groping a female inmate’s breast, officials announced Monday.
Nanette Musto, 51, is accused of approaching an inmate at San Francisco County Jail #2 on Sunday and asking if she had undergone cosmetic surgery. According to the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, Musto then touched the inmate’s breast without permission or lawful necessity.
The alleged incident, which reportedly occurred due to rumors spread among inmates, left the victim feeling “humiliated and embarrassed,” the DA’s office stated.
Prosecutors said the alleged act was captured on jail surveillance footage. Musto, who has been employed by the sheriff’s office since 2017, faces up to six months in jail if convicted. Court records indicate she was arrested and subsequently released on $3,000 bail.
The Department of Police Accountability and the District Attorney’s office are continuing to investigate the case.
Musto is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday to enter her plea.
This incident is the latest in a series of misconduct allegations against sheriff’s deputies in San Francisco jails. In May, a group of female prisoners filed a lawsuit against the sheriff’s office, alleging they were subjected to strip searches that were recorded by deputies using body-worn cameras, in violation of policy. Last fall, a deputy was fired following accusations of sexually assaulting a transgender inmate.