A former prison nurse has pleaded guilty to stealing hundreds of prescription and non-prescription pills from the facility where she worked.

Patricia Bautista of Oxford pleaded guilty Monday to theft by unlawful taking.

Bautista is a registered nurse who was employed by the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. She worked at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility in Union Twp., Hunterdon Co., and the Mountainview Youth Correctional Facility in Clinton Twp., Hunterdon Co.

Bautista admitted stealing nearly 6,000 pills, ranging from pain medications to antibiotics and vitamins, from the Edna Mahan facility.

The state will recommend Bautista serve 180 days in jail and pay $842 for the stolen drugs when she's sentenced on July 13. She would also be barred from public employment in New Jersey.