PHOENIX - An inmate's letter prompted an investigation at Lower Buckeye Jail, where a jail nurse was arrested on drug paraphernalia and contraband charges.
Inmate's Letter:
The Maricopa County Sheriff's detectives said they received a handwritten letter dated Aug. 26 from an incarcerated inmate at the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry on Nov. 4.
The letter accused Lisa Marie Lara, a Correctional Health Services (CHS) nurse within the Maricopa County jail system, of strong drug paraphernalia in her car, which is typically parked at the Lower Buckeye Jail in Phoenix. It was also alleged that Lara brought contraband onto jail property and had inappropriate relationships with the jailed inmates.
The Investigation:
On the same day they got the letter, MCSO detectives found Lara's car in the jail facility's parking lot just after 8 p.m., and had a K-9 conduct an open-air sniff of her vehicle.
"The K-9 positively alerted to the odor of narcotics emanating from the vehicle. Based upon the K-9's training and certification, the alert is indicative of the presence of controlled substances and/or evidence associated with narcotics-related activity within the vehicle," the probably cause statement said.
Search Warrant:
Detectives then searched her vehicle, Lara, and her items she brought into the facility. Inside her car, detectives found a glass bong, a glass pipe with a bulb end containing burned white residue, and a purple pipe with a bulb end in the center console— materials commonly associated with ingesting methamphetamine. Inside the center console were a pack of menthol cigarettes and albuterol inhalers.
Dig deeper:
Lara was detained and taken to the MCSO Major Crimes Division Facility to be interviewed. She denied smuggling in contraband for the inmates, along with having any romantic relationships with them. Initially blaming her adopted son for leaving pipes in her car, she later admitted to smoking meth in the car several times, and that her DNA would be on the mouthpiece. However, she said she never smoked meth in the jail's parking lot.
The CHS nurse was booked into the Intake, Transfer, and Release Jail facility for violations of promoting prison contraband and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Map of Lower Buckeye Jail.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and a probable cause statement.