Jailer guilty of eavesdropping
Among three accused in case
March 25, 2011 - By CHRISTOPHER BOBBY Tribune Chronicle
WARREN - One of three corrections officers at the Trumbull County Jail who were put on paid administrative leave in December pleaded guilty Thursday to a misdemeanor charge.
Barbara Ruggieri, 45, of Meadowbrook Avenue S.E., will undergo a pre-sentence investigation before being sentenced on a charge of falsification. The charge carries a maximum sentence of up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Ruggieri, who tried to hold back tears while offering the plea to Judge John M. Stuard, was never indicted like the two other jailers and pleaded guilty to a bill of information. Her attorney, Gary Rich, said she has lost her job.
The jailers were targeted by their superiors during an eavesdropping probe inside the jail.
Trumbull County Sheriff's officials called in agents with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation after learning the corrections officers may have activated an intercom inside the jail that would allow them to listen in on conversations between their superiors.
The eavesdropping occurred repeatedly and on at least two different shifts. The practice is clearly against the law, Sheriff Tom Altiere said.
The officials said corrections officers can easily use security cameras to see who is just outside the walls of the jail and flip a switch to talk to or listen to anyone on camera.
Robert J. Rihel Jr., 45, of Leavittsburg, was indicted earlier this year by a Trumbull County grand jury on 23 counts of "interception of wire, oral or electronic communications.'' The various counts in the indictment say the eavesdropping occurred from July 7 to Nov. 1.
Timothy Billock, 45, of Newton Falls, was indicted on six counts of the same charge - all fourth-degree felonies. His indictment stated the acts occurred between July 27 and Oct. 14.
Ruggieri worked for the department since April 2009. Billock and Rihel have been there for 12 years, both hired in 1998.
Billock was brought up on criminal charges in 2009 for shooting at a motorist he said was speeding past his home in Newton Falls and squealing his tires. Billock said he tried to stop the man and showed him his badge, but the motorist drove off. Billock claimed the man grabbed his arm before driving away.
A charge of discharging a firearm that was filed by Newton Falls police was dismissed by Judge Philip Vigorito in December 2009.