Former Louisville jail officer sentenced to prison for assaulting detainee
A former Louisville corrections officer was sentenced this week to serve three years in prison after previously pleading guilty to using unlawful force against a person in custody.
A federal grand jury indicted Darrell Taylor in June on one count of deprivation of rights under color of law, the U.S. Department of Justice announced at the time. He was accused of assaulting a pretrial detainee in December 2020 while he was working at Louisville's Metro Corrections jail.
He was sentenced Wednesday after being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Kentucky.
A release Friday from the department said Taylor had followed a detainee back to his bunk after the detainee used insulting language while the officer was serving breakfast. The detainee, who had reported mental health issues, was thrown to the ground and punched repeatedly by Taylor, the release said, and the detainee's jaw and cheekbone were broken after he lost consciousness and was slammed face-first into the floor.
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In court documents filed late last week, Taylor's attorney had asked the court for a sentence of three years probation. The filing argued the man was not seriously injured and Taylor had been "put in an untenable situation" during the altercation ― the individual who was hit had started the fight, the memorandum said, and several officers said he'd used appropriate force.
The defense also noted two former Louisville Metro Police detectives recently received lighter sentences for egregious crimes. Former officer Bryan Wilson was sentenced to 30 months in prison after pleading guilty to throwing drinks at unassuming citizens in Louisville's West End and to using electronic communication to stalk and extort women online by using private images he'd obtained by hacking into their phones. Former officer Curt Flynn was also given a three-month sentence for throwing drinks at people.
"Sentencing Mr. Taylor to a harsher sentence than what these two individuals received would be unjust," the filing from John Casey McCall, Taylor's attorney, said.
The FBI Louisville office investigated the case, with Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen calling the sentence "a reminder that the FBI takes all allegations of civil rights violations seriously."
"Corrections officers are tasked with the difficult job of maintaining a safe and secure environment in our prison facilities," he said in a release. "When one officer abuses the authority placed in them by violating the civil rights of an inmate, it undermines the trust placed in all law enforcement officers."
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In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said the assault was an abuse of power and violated the community's trust.
"Officials working inside jails and prisons who abuse inmates and detainees are not above the law, and we will continue to vigorously prosecute those who deprive people of their Constitutional rights," Clarke said.
This story may be updated.
Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Ex-Louisville Metro Corrections officer gets 3 years over assault case
