A former Oregon State Penitentiary officer was sentenced to almost three years in prison for having sex with a convicted killer. Rebecca McLauchlin, 36, is the first prison employee convicted under a new state law that makes sexual intercourse with a prisoner a felony.

She had sex with inmate Cory Ogden last summer. In an agreement with prosecutors, she pleaded guilty Tuesday to custodial sexual misconduct, official misconduct and receiving a bribe — supplying Ogden with tobacco in exchange for at least $200.

Clad in dark-blue jail clothing, McLauchlin appeared to be fighting back tears. When Judge John Wilson asked her whether she wanted to make a statement, she quietly said "no." Daniel Carroll, her attorney, said McLauchlin has three children and is being divorced by her husband.

Carroll said the former corrections officer is worried about how she will be treated by inmates and officers.

"Her status as a CO, well, a former CO, is definitely going to follow her," he said.

Perrin Damon, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Corrections, said it remains to be seen what security measures, if any, will be taken. Sometimes, Damon said, the state will send prisoners to other states. A year to the day before she pleaded guilty, McLauchlin was taken hostage for three hours by an inmate. McLauchlin, who was not injured, was honored for bravery. Later, prison officials began investigating her.

Carroll suggested that McLauchlin's trysts with Ogden may have stemmed from the hostage trauma.

"I don't think the impact of that experience can be discounted," he said. "I think it played a role. She went back to work very quickly. It's my understanding she went back to work in the same area where the hostage situation happened."