Reno woman facing elder abuse and concealed weapon charges allegedly found with drugs in jail cell

Source : http://www.rgj.com/article/20091112/NEWS01/91112064/1018/SPORTS/Reno-woman-facing-elder-abuse-and-concealed-weapon-charges-allegedly-found-with-drugs-in-jail-cell

By Jaclyn O'Malley • jomalley@rgj.com • November 12, 2009

A 35-year-old former Washoe County legal guardian jailed last week for bringing an unloaded gun into a Reno court was booked additionally for possessing prescription drugs after deputies found them during a search of her jail cell.

Angela Cheri Dottei was arrested Nov. 3 on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon into Reno Justice Court. An unloaded firearm was allegedly found in her belongings as she went through the court’s metal detector. Authorities said she had gone to the court for a scheduled hearing. She was arrested on-site and later ordered jailed in lieu of $25,000 cash bail.
Dottei is also under investigation by Reno police for allegedly financially exploiting her elderly wards. A Washoe Family Court investigation revealed she was allegedly stealing money from her wards while in her role as a legal guardian through her company, Assurity Guardian Resources. A judge in September placed sanctions upon her, fined her hundreds of thousands of dollars and suspended her license to work as a guardian.
Wednesday, during a search of her jail cell, deputies found a plastic bag containing multiple types of prescription drugs hidden in hygiene products, said Deputy Brooke Keast. She was booked additionally on two counts of suspicion of possessing a controlled substance by an inmate, which is a felony.
Deputies were still investigating how she possessed the drugs. Keast said that under the law, inmates may not be strip searched unless there is a reasonable suspicion they may have hidden contraband. In this case, she said deputies had no reason to believe she hid anything.
Keast said it’s rare that inmates are found in possession of drugs.
“We always do systematic searches of cells,” she said. “The search is what lead us to finding the drugs. It’s why we do them.”
Reno police fraud detectives say they are investigating Dottei for allegedly exploiting at least three of her elderly wards. No charges have been filed.

Source : http://www.rgj.com/article/20091112/NEWS01/91112064/1018/SPORTS/Reno-woman-facing-elder-abuse-and-concealed-weapon-charges-allegedly-found-with-drugs-in-jail-cell