Waukesha County Jail employee smuggled contraband, convicted

WAUKESHA, Wis. – A former Waukesha County Jail employee was sentenced to four years in federal prison he pleaded guilty for providing the inmate with marijuana and a cell phone.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Johanna Grace, 34, committed the crime while serving as a sheriff’s department lieutenant. She cooperated with people outside the prison, bringing contraband.

SUBSCRIBE TODAY: Get daily headlines and breaking news emails from FOX6 News

Once she realized the crime would be discovered, federal prosecutors said Grace shared internal law enforcement reports with the same outside collaborators. She admitted obstructing justice as part of her sentence.

There is also grace defendant in Waukesha County case due to the death of a prisoner in 2023

The case of death in prison

Investigators said Randy Glenn Jr. was arrested during a traffic stop on a probation violation related to prior drug convictions. Prosecutors said Glenn was found dead in his home Waukesha County The next morning he was taken to a cell and an autopsy revealed five small bags containing almost 10 grams of cocaine in his stomach.

Washington County was assigned to investigate Glenn’s death. In a press release, investigators said: “There were no obvious signs in the cell to suggest a cause of death.” While being admitted, the guard told investigators he heard “sounds of choking or gagging” and believed Glenn was “trying to swallow something.”

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts on the FOX6 News app for iOS or Android.

Prosecutors said Deborah Link, a prison nurse who is also charged in the case, was told about the case. According to prosecutors, she even checked her purse “which fell out of (Glenna’s) mouth.” Link told police that Glenn denied swallowing anything and that “everything was fine.”

Later that night, Glenn was “sweating very heavily.” Grace, a lieutenant, was on duty at the time. Detectives said that during the search, Glenna found “two plastic bags” on the floor. Investigators said she was “notified of a medical issue” but did not record it in her end-of-shift log.

Last year, Grace pleaded not guilty to abusing prison inmates.