MADISON, WIS. - Jeffrey M. Anderson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Amy Ziemann, 44, Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to one year and one day in federal prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Ziemann, formerly an employee at the Federal Correctional Institution at Oxford, Wis., pleaded guilty on March 22 to making a false statement to investigators and to soliciting false testimony before a federal grand jury.
Ziemann admitted that during an interview with a federal investigator, she falsely denied doing various things which were in violation of her official duties, including allowing inmates access to her desk phone. The evidence also established that Ziemann engaged in sexual acts with an inmate and that she brought prohibited objects into FCI-Oxford for inmates, including pornography, tobacco, and other contraband.
Ziemann also admitted that she attempted to persuade Stacy Lenorud, also a former employee of FCI-Oxford, to testify falsely about these matters before a federal grand jury. Lenorud pleaded guilty to conspiring with Ziemann to provide prohibited items to an inmate at FCI-Oxford, and was sentenced on February 23 to two years of probation.
Judge Conley said Ziemann “lost her moral compass," and that he was particularly troubled by her disclosure of sensitive information to an inmate known to be a gang member.
The charges against Ziemann were the result of a lengthy investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General. The prosecution of the case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Przybylinski Finn.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
