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Corrections Officer Indicted On Phone Smuggling Charges

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- A California prison guard has been indicted on six counts of taking bribes from inmates to smuggle tobacco and cell phones.

The federal grand jury in Sacramento says Bobby Joe Kirby of Reno, Nev., took nearly $16,000 to sneak the contraband into the California Correctional Center in Susanville. The minimum-security prison trains inmates to fight wildfires.

Kirby, who is 55, is free on $25,000 bond after his arrest in June on a preliminary charge that was sealed until he was indicted Wednesday. He has not entered a plea, and his attorney, Matthew Bockmon, did not return a telephone message.

He faces up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted.

Gov. Jerry Brown is considering legislation making such smuggling a misdemeanor to fight the growing problem of phones behind bars.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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