OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Extra hassle for the Oklahoma County Jail. 4 jailers have now formally been charged with assault and battery for incidents involving inmates. The costs coming the identical day one other inmate is confirmed to have died contained in the jail
“I believe it’s crucial that the general public actually understand what’s happening in right here,” stated John LaMunyon, a former inmate on the jail.
4 Oklahoma County Detention Officers– Joseph Hedderman, Frantz Desir, Antonio Rivera, and Richard Clark, have been charged with assault and battery.
The latest incident from March 22nd, Desir allegedly obtained right into a verbal altercation with an inmate. Courtroom paperwork saying he “used each palms and shoved inmate… backwards, inflicting him to the autumn to the bottom.”
The inmate “struck his head inflicting a laceration to his left eye lid.”
And in February, Rivera, who was a senior detention officer on the time, accused of unlawfully shoving an inmate into cell bars. The courtroom paperwork say Rivera additionally “delivered two knee strikes” to the inmate’s stomach.
A second officer who responded reported she “positioned her forearm on Rivera’s chest, and yelled at him to cease.”
And in that very same incident, Clark, who was a senior detention officer on the time, additionally charged. He allegedly deployed his pepper spray into the inmate’s face “from lower than a foot away.”
We spoke with John LaMunyon, who was not too long ago an inmate within the jail, he says the dearth of employees is inflicting huge issues.
“It doesn’t shock me. Tensions are very excessive up within the jail between inmates and jailers,” LaMunyon stated.
And the third incident from April of 2019– again when the sheriff’s workplace was nonetheless in command of the jail. Detention officer Joseph Hedderman is going through two counts of assault and battery.
Charged with unlawfully pepper spraying an inmate within the face after which kicking the inmate “in her chest/stomach space one time.”
That inmate is now suing Hedderman– in addition to former sheriff P.D. Taylor and the Board of Oklahoma County Commissioners.
That very same lawsuit saying Taylor “fired” Hedderman over the incident.
Additionally– the day after the fees had been filed, the jail sending out a launch saying a 65-year-old girl, who has been recognized as Christa Sullivan, died on Tuesday after experiencing a medical incident– making her the sixth inmate to die within the jail this yr.
The Oklahoma County Prison Justice Authority despatched the next assertion with regard to Sullivan’s loss of life:
The Oklahoma County Detention Heart will not be capable of touch upon the loss of life of a detainee as a result of it’s presently an energetic investigation. That’s a routine protocol adopted anytime there’s a loss of life within the detention middle. As soon as the investigation is full, the report is made public.
One other former inmate we spoke with, not wanting to indicate his face, however says one thing has to vary.
“I believe from the highest down I believe that we have to revisit employees,” the inmate stated. “Why are individuals dropping their life within the system the place individuals are alleged to be rehabilitated?”
We began contacting the detention focus on 11 a.m. Wednesday morning.
“The Oklahoma County Prison Justice Authority has a zero tolerance coverage on extreme use of power with detainees within the Oklahoma County Detention Heart.
We’ve got detailed insurance policies that information the detention officer’s conduct for interacting with detainees, together with verbal instructions and use of power. Any violation of those insurance policies is grounds for dismissal following investigation and evaluate.”
Tricia Everest, chair of the Oklahoma County Prison Justice Authority
We additionally requested if the opposite jailers had been nonetheless employed however have but to listen to again.
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