CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Three former correctional officers from United States Penitentiary Hazleton have admitted to their roles in the violation of civil rights involving the assault of a prisoner, announced United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld.
Robert David Sims, 42, of Bruceton Mills, West Virginia, pled guilty to assault resulting in serious bodily injury. According to court documents and statements made in court, during a strip search of an inmate, Sims repeatedly struck him in the face, head, arms, and torso, causing significant injuries.
Joshua David Sines, 39, of Friendsville, Maryland, pled guilty to conspiring to commit an alteration and falsification of records. Sines falsified reports on the incident to protect himself and Sims from disciplinary action or prosecution.
Josiah Dandue Redd, 36, of Morgantown, West Virginia, pled guilty to making a false statement to a federal agent and accessory after the fact to an assault by striking, beating, or wounding. According to statements made in court, Redd also falsified reports and statements to agents about the incident to protect Sims and Sines.
“The defendants abused their powers as correctional officers and now they will be held to account,” said U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to prosecute officers who misuse their authority and violate the rights of people in their custody.”
Sims, Sines, and Redd have agreed to resign their positions with the Bureau of Prisons and to not seek or obtain employment in the future with the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, or any private prison or community corrections center that contracts to house federal prisoners.
“We expect Correctional Officers to conduct themselves with integrity and to foster safe and humane conditions of confinement for inmates. Instead, Sims violently assaulted an inmate and Sines and Redd conspired to cover it up in an attempt to avoid punishment,” said Timothy C. Edmiston, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Mid-Atlantic Region. “These acts will not be tolerated. Perpetrators of assault and those who make false statements to cover it up will be brought to justice.”
Sims faces up to 10 years in federal prison. Sines is facing up to five years. Redd faces up to five years for the false statement charge and up to six months for the accessory charge. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is seeking information from persons who may have witnessed or were victims of physical assault while incarcerated at FCC Hazelton. Any witness or victim to any such crimes or crimes or attempts to conceal such crimes are asked to directly contact federal prosecutors in the Northern District of West Virginia by calling 1-855-WVA-FEDS or by sending an email to wvafeds@usdoj.gov.
The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Inspector General investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Flower is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi presided.
