Inmate injured and corrections officer fired after Monroe County Jail brawl
A corrections officer has been fired after a brawl at the Monroe County Jail two weeks ago during which a 42-year-old inmate suffered a broken nose and eye socket bone.
Sheriff Ruben Martè said jailer James D. Mitchell sustained a busted lip and is seen on body camera footage punching the inmate after being attacked. He "failed to follow our high standards requiring de-escalation whenever possible," the sheriff said.
Mitchell is white and the inmate is Black; court records say the inmate is 5-foot-10 and weighs 290 pounds.
The sheriff's comment came during a 75-second video posted on the MCSD Facebook page. Martè said he stands behind his employees, but will hold them accountable if they don't follow policies.
He described how inmate Marcus Ford refused repeated requests by jail staff pleading with him to go to a medical segregation cell as recommended by the jail nurse. The video shows Ford attacking three white corrections officers, who attempt to physically restrain him. A fight ensues, with Ford eventually getting strapped into a padded restraint chair used for unruly inmates.
Col. Phillip Parker, chief deputy for the sheriff's department, issued a statement about the incident.
"At one point, Ford told an officer, 'As soon as you touch me, I’m [going to] knock your teeth out.' After continued refusal to move to the medical observation cell and numerous other verbal threats of serious bodily injury, several officers then entered the cell and were immediately attacked by Ford."
The sheriff requested an Indiana State Police investigation and a review by the Monroe County Prosecutor's Office. No charges are being pursued against Ford or the fired jailer, who has worked as a corrections officer about seven months, since July 2022.
After an internal department review, Martè fired Mitchell "who, in an admittedly difficult situation, failed to follow the high standards of the office that require de-escalation whenever possible," Parker's statement said.
A hearing and disposition order signed by Parker Feb. 10 said Mitchell's conduct was unacceptable for a corrections officer. It said that during the Jan. 31 altercation, Mitchell violated two policies by not transitioning to non-violent strategies to gain control of Ford and by refusing two commands from a sergeant to leave the area.
Use-of-force training for corrections officers had been scheduled before this happened. Martè said using force is not something jailers ever want to do.
“Even when my staff is forced to use force due to a combative inmate, they must continue to follow our policies requiring de-escalation whenever the situation allows it,” he said.
Ford, listed in court and jail records as being transient, was arrested the afternoon of Jan. 12 at Crawford Apartments on South Henderson Street after an employee reported Ford had broken down a door there. He's been jailed since.
He also is serving time for domestic battery, interfering with the reporting of a crime and criminal mischief.
Contact H-T reporter Laura Lane at llane@heraldt.com or 812-318-5967.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Monroe County Sheriff Ruben Marte fires jail employee after brawl
