Harford Co. Jail Chaplain Charged In Sexual Assaults On Inmates

A grand jury on Tuesday indicted a Harford County sheriff's office chaplain, since terminated, for alleged assaults and sex offenses against inmates, the sheriff's office announced.

Rev. Kennis Andrew Rolle Sr., 59, of Middle River was assigned to the Harford County Detention Center and was suspended in March after the allegations were first made.

“We hold all agency members to the highest level of integrity," Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler said in a statement. "I am deeply disappointed that someone who has been put in a position of confidence to assist people during vulnerable points of their lives, has violated that trust. This type of behavior will not be tolerated in this agency.”

Investigators say two women, ages 31 and 26, alleged that during scheduled and unscheduled counseling sessions in Rolle's office, he would touch them in unwelcome ways. These include unsolicited hugs, kisses on the forehead and cheek, playing with hair and touching of their buttocks on the outside of their clothing. The conduct allegedly happened in the fall of 2014 and again between December 2015 and February.

Rolle has been with the sheriff's office since September 2012. Rolle turned himself in without incident on Wednesday and was released on a $50,000 bond.