Lawyer in New York jail 'soap ball' death disputes photo evidence

By Andrew Chung NEW YORK (Reuters) - A lawyer for a former New York City jail captain asked jurors on Tuesday to discount graphic photos they were shown of a mentally ill inmate who died in 2012 after swallowing corrosive detergent known as a soap ball. Lawyer Sam Braverman said in a closing argument in Manhattan federal court that the photos of the inmate and his cell are not the evidence that prosecutors said they are. In one photo, grime on a window was streaked in directions that would be inconsistent with the prosecution's theory that the grime was dried vomit, Braverman said. The former captain, Terrence Pendergrass, is on trial on a criminal charge that he deliberately ignored the medical needs of the prisoner, Jason Echevarria. Pendergrass, 50, faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. Jurors began deliberating after closing arguments. According to prosecutors, sewage backed up in one of the cell blocks at Rikers Island jail complex in August 2012, and Echevarria was given a soap ball to clean up even though rules required the packets be diluted in water. He swallowed the ammonium chloride, and inmates heard him screaming for help, charging documents said. Pendergrass was told about the situation by two guards but failed to arrange for medical care for Echevarria, who was found dead the next morning, the documents said. "He had a duty to help a sick man," Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Richenthal told jurors in the prosecution's closing argument. "He decided not to do it." Braverman said the government has concocted a story out of photos and videos that is not supported by the evidence. A photo showed bruises on Echevarria's wrist, and prosecutors said they were made when he banged on his cell door "as his insides burned." Braverman said the medical examiner could not confirm that scenario. Braverman also said Pendergrass had no motive to harm Echevarria. He said the other guards, who testified as government witnesses, were not credible. Politicians, prisoners' rights advocates and federal prosecutors have called for improved conditions at Rikers, a jail complex that houses more than 11,000 people. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in August said his office had found a pattern of excessive force used against teenaged inmates, and he threatened a lawsuit if changes were not made. (Reporting by Andrew Chung; Editing by David Ingram and Grant McCool)