ECI officers charged in inmate beating, destroying evidence to cover it up
Federal charges against a pair of Eastern Correctional Institution employees have been levied following a July 2021 incident where an inmate was beaten, and then evidence of the attack destroyed.
One of the guards has reached a plea deal to plead guilty while the other is still awaiting a court date.
The charges for the defendants in the case center on the assault itself and the conspiracy among ECI staff to cover it up.
The Eastern Correctional Institution is a medium-security state prison for men located in Westover, Somerset County, Maryland.
Two correctional officers charged in inmate assault, destroying evidence
Court filings in U.S. District Court in the District of Maryland stipulate Samuel Warren and David Quillen, while working as correctional officers at the location, punched an inmate, identified as K.K., multiple times "without legal justification resulting in bodily injury." Following that, the pair allegedly destroyed a video containing evidence of the assault "with the intent to impede...the investigation."
The Federal Bureau of Investigation-led inquiry into the incident also found the pair coordinated accounts of the assault, also with the intent to impede the investigation.
The matter is currently being prosecuted by attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice, who have declined any further comment on the ongoing case aside from what is in the court documents.
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Plea deal for one guard after inmate beating, falsification of records
Warren, who is scheduled to be sentenced April 16, 2024, accepted a plea deal for federal charges that included deprivation of rights under color of law, which covers the inmate being deprived rights secured by the Constitution and U.S. laws, "to be free of cruel and unusual punishment."
The charge also covers willful acts by the defendant that led to bodily injury against the inmate.
The second charge of falsification of records includes how the "defendant falsified or made a false entry in a record or document." It also covers efforts to impede or obstruct, in any way, an investigation into the incident.
The sentence Warren could face for the first charge is maximum of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a maximum fine of $250,000. The second charge has the defendant facing up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and another $250,000 fine.
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Second guard charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice, more
Quillen, who did not receive a plea deal, was charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice and destruction of records.
Stipulations under the conspiracy charge state the defendant knowingly destroyed a tangible object, "specifically, a video that contained evidence of Warren's unlawful assault of K.K."
According to the case filing, "it was a part and plan and purpose of this conspiracy that the defendant, Warren, and other correctional officers at ECI would cover up evidence of the fact that Warren, while acting under the color of law, had used unjustified and excessive force."
From Aug. 2022 through Feb. 2023, noted the investigation documents, "Warren and other ECI correctional officers ... made false statement to a special agent of the FBI and other federal law personnel and committed perjury."
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Quillen's second charge claims he "knowingly destroyed and concealed a record and tangible object with the intent to obstruct and influence the investigation."
No court date has yet to be publicly released for Quillen at the time of publication.
This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: 2 ECI officers face charges in inmate beating, destruction of evidence
