Ex-Dutchess prison guard from Westchester accused of covering up assault on inmate
A former New York state correction officer was arrested Thursday on a federal indictment charging him with falsifying records related to his assault of an inmate at Green Haven Correctional Facility two years ago.
Taj Everly, 32, of Cortlandt Manor, is accused of filing a report that falsely claimed his punching of the inmate was justified because the inmate hit him first. He pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court in White Plains.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement that Everly had abused his position.
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"This office has no tolerance for correction officers like Everly who, as alleged, commit acts of violence against inmates in their care and custody and then lie to cover their tracks," Williams said.
According to the indictment, Everly was stationed at the H-Block end gate at the prison in Stormville on May 28, 2020. When the inmate approached, Everly punched him in the face with no provocation, causing both men to fall to the ground.
In his "use of force" report on the incident, Everly claimed that the inmate threw an unprovoked punch, hitting him in the area of his left shoulder and neck. Everly claimed he responded by "instinctively" punching the inmate once in the face, executing a body hold and taking the inmate to the ground.
Everly joined the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision in 2016 and resigned in June 2021. He spent all five years at Green Haven.
He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. A lawyer representing him could not immediately be reached.
Everly is one of several Green Haven correction officers who were sued in federal court last year by John Hamlett, a convicted rapist from Manhattan. Hamlett alleges that Everly smashed his head against a wall in a stairwell in August 2018 in retaliation for several complaints Hamlett made about actions by correction officers and conditions at the prison.
The New York Attorney General's Office represents the correction officers in that case and has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Ex-Green Haven prison guard accused of covering up assault on inmate
