ROCKLAND, Maine — A federal judge has cleared Knox County, the sheriff and a trio of employees in a civil lawsuit filed by a female inmate who was sexually assaulted by a guard.

U.S. District Court Judge John Levy issued a judgment in favor of the county and the employees on Sept. 16.

Knox County’s attorney Peter Marchesi said Friday that the county did not pay out anything.

“What I can tell you is that nothing was paid on behalf of my clients, and judgment on the merits was entered in their favor,” Marchesi said.

Marchesi represented the county, Sheriff Donna Dennison, Lt. Kathy Carver, Sgt. Reggie Walker and corrections officer Anne Orne.

“The outcome was exactly the same as if the case went to trial and these defendants received a verdict in their favor. It was, and is, an admission by the plaintiff that none of these individuals did anything wrong,” Marchesi said.

Marchesi did not represent former corrections officer Adam Grierson, who was convicted in August of gross sexual assault against the woman who filed the lawsuit. He said that Grierson’s attorney would have been paid for through the insurance risk pool that represents Maine counties.

The woman’s civil lawsuit against Grierson was dismissed on Sept. 24.

Attorney David Kreisler, who represented the woman, said he could not comment on the disposition of the case. Grierson’s attorney John Wall III did not immediately respond to an email sent Friday morning seeking comment.

Marchesi said he does not know if the insurance pool paid a settlement to the woman in the Grierson civil case, but said he would expect if it did, it was minimal to avoid the costs of a civil trial.

Grierson pleaded no contest and was convicted Aug. 26 in Knox County Superior Court of one count of gross sexual assault. Justice John O’Neil sentenced Grierson, 27, to 15 months in jail with all but 60 days suspended followed by two years of probation.

Grierson’s no contest plea allowed him to contest the civil lawsuit that was filed by the woman in federal court in July 2013.

Grierson’s defense argued in a response to the civil lawsuit filed by the woman in federal court that she later acknowledged that the sexual encounters did not occur under any kind of threats and there was no particular quid pro quo for the sex. In fact, according to Grierson’s defense, the woman on a couple of occasions asked other inmates to create a distraction or stand lookout while the encounters took place.

Grierson already had been placed on administrative leave in 2012, after being accused of providing cigarettes to the woman. Following an internal investigation, he was charged with trafficking tobacco and he resigned in March 2012. The trafficking case later was dismissed.

The allegations of sexual assault did not come to light until the woman filed her civil rights lawsuit in July 2013. She sought $300,000 in damages as well as unspecified punitive damages.

The Bangor Daily News is not naming the woman because she is considered a victim of sexual assault.

The woman, who was an inmate at Knox County Jail from November 2011 through April 2012, told Rockland police that in exchange for sex, Grierson provided her with cigarettes he smuggled into the nonsmoking facility. Grierson acknowledged the sexual encounters but denied it was in exchange for cigarettes. In Maine, it is a felony for corrections officers to sexually assault an inmate under their supervision.

This was the first of two criminal cases resulting from allegations that guards were sexually assaulting women at the jail.

Richard S. Wellington, 61, was indicted in April on two counts of unlawful sexual contact and 17 counts of unlawful sexual touching. The indictments list three different victims, with the assaults beginning in November 2012 and ending in August 2013.

He remains jailed until his trial is held.

To reach a sexual assault advocate, call the Statewide Sexual Assault Crisis and Support Line at 800-871-7741, TTY 888-458-5599. This free and confidential 24-hour service is accessible from anywhere in Maine. Calls are automatically routed to the closest sexual violence service provider.