A former employee of an Atlanta halfway house has been sentenced to prison for sexually abusing an inmate and lying during an investigation, officials say.
Tristan Cox, a contract employee who worked at the Atlanta Residential Reentry Center as a residence monitor in 2024, pleaded guilty to violating the inmate's civil rights and making false statements to a federal agent.
Under federal law, corrections staff are prohibited from having sexual contact, and any such contact is a civil rights violation.
Cox was accused of sexually assaulting an inmate in a supply room during one of his overnight shifts, authorities said. When interviewed by federal agents, Cox denied having any sexual contact with the inmate then said that the victim assaulted him after being told that DNA evidence corroborated the victim's account.
"Cox exploited his position to sexually assault an inmate and lied about it to a federal agent," stated Special Agent in Charge Eric Fehlman of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General's Southeast Region. "The DOJ OIG will continue working with its law enforcement partners to ensure that anyone participating in this type of behavior is brought to justice."
On Tuesday, a federal judge sentenced the Atlanta man to one year and six months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release.
