Woman charged with sexual assault of assisted living residents

Jessica L. Wickersham, age 37, whose current address is shown as the Lincoln County Jail in Merrill, made her initial appearance in Lincoln County Circuit Court on Monday, March 23, 2026, facing three felony counts of second degree sexual assault. The charges allege that Wickersham, while employed as a caregiver at an assisted living facility in the city of Tomahawk, engaged in sexual contact with residents of that facility on three separate occasions in March 2025.
Each count carries a penalty of up to $100,000 and/or up to 40 years in prison, if convicted.
A fourth charge — exposing intimate parts to a child — was also included in the original Criminal Complaint but was dismissed by Judge Galen Bayne-Allison at the initial appearance. The court determined the complaint failed to meet the “four corners” standard, meaning the complaint itself did not contain sufficient facts on its face to establish probable cause for that count.

How the investigation began
According to the Criminal Complaint filed in the case, the investigation began on March 25, 2025, when Sergeant Gorell of the Tomahawk Police Department received information regarding a sexual assault at the assisted living facility. The complaint states that the abuse was initially discovered when a supervisor at the Lincoln County Jail monitored an outgoing phone call from Christopher L. Wickersham — Jessica Wickersham’s husband, who was confined at the jail at the time — during which Christopher allegedly directed Jessica, who was on shift at the facility, to have sexual contact with a resident.
Investigators reviewed multiple recorded phone calls between Christopher and Jessica Wickersham made through the jail’s Securus phone system, which contained an automated warning that each call was recorded. The complaint alleges that during those calls, Christopher directed Jessica to perform sexual acts on or involving residents of the facility while she was on duty, and that she appeared compliant during those conversations.
The complaint alleges the incidents occurred on March 19, 20, and 22, 2025, and that a resident was present — and, in at least one instance, unconscious and sleeping — during the alleged acts.

Jessica Wickersham’s account
When interviewed by Sergeant Gorell and Detective White on March 26, 2025, Jessica Wickersham acknowledged engaging in “naughty” behavior with her husband over the phone while she was working at the facility. The complaint states she described the activity as “a nurse/patient fantasy scenario that she performed for Christopher’s benefit” and said she was “just pretending to complete the sexual acts.” She said Christopher did not know she was pretending.
However, the complaint notes that Christopher Wickersham, by that time transferred to Stanley Correctional Facility, later wrote a letter to investigators stating that Jessica “was not role playing” and that he knew she had engaged in sexual contact with multiple residents. In a subsequent interview with law enforcement, Christopher reportedly confirmed the activity and said he had asked Jessica to perform the acts, in part because he wanted to have evidence against her in the event she ever wanted to leave him.

Digital evidence
A forensic examination of Jessica Wickersham’s Samsung Galaxy S23+ smartphone, conducted on May 27, 2025, recovered two categories of images. The first was a set of pornographic images of Wickersham posing in her underwear with her intimate parts exposed; in several of those images, the back of a small child’s head is visible, with the child looking directly toward her. The child appeared to be Wickersham’s 4-year-old son.
The second set consisted of similar pornographic images taken by Wickersham of herself at the assisted living facility in Tomahawk while she was on duty, on multiple dates between February and March 2025, in which items and property inside the facility were visible in the images, along with her exposing her intimate parts.

Court conditions and next steps
Wickersham appeared in court on Monday, March 23, 2026, in person while in custody. Attorney Restemayer represented her, appearing by special appearance.
Judge Bayne-Allison set cash bond at $150,000. As conditions of her bond, Wickersham is prohibited from holding any supervisory role or position as a caregiver for any vulnerable individual, including any child; she is not to be alone with any vulnerable individual at any time, and an unrelated adult must be within sight and sound of her at all times; and she may not have contact with or go on the premises of any facility as defined under the relevant statutes.
A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for March 30, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. in Lincoln County Circuit Court.
This case has not been concluded. Unless a judgment of conviction is entered, Wickersham is presumed innocent of all charges.