Defendants in Jailhouse Sex Scandal Appear in Court

The cases of a jailhouse nurse and two jail employees in Morgan County hiding a sexual relationship between the nurse and an inmate continued this week with two out of three showing up for their scheduled court dates. Elizabeth Knipp, one of the two jailers, showed up with her attorney waiving her preliminary hearing and sending her case to the circuit level. Knipp’s next court date is January 22^nd. The other jailer, Robert Hoover, also showed up with his attorney waiving his arraignment and setting the case for a preliminary hearing on January 31^st.  The nurse, Janet Phillips, failed to appear for court. Her attorney, however, did e-file a waiver of formal arraignment and plea of not guilty prior to the court date setting up a preliminary hearing on January 31^st. Kevin Hillman, of Waynesville, was appointed as a special prosecutor for the case which is being presided over by Judge Jeff Mittelhauser after Judge Steven Grantham, in Morgan County, recused himself from all three cases.