|
|
| Prisoner beaten by officers; now suing |
| By WFSB |
| Published: 05/10/2004 |
|
A Connecticut prisoner claims he was beaten by officers at the state's toughest prison. He claims it was retaliation for having tried to go public about what really goes on behind bars. On March 9, Robert Joslyn, an inmate at Northern Correctional Center, turned on the sprinkler system flooding his cell block. He says the way officers punished him makes them the criminals. Joslyn is serving four years at Northern for having a weapon in prison and assaulting an officer but Joslyn's attorney, Antonio Ponvert, says it is his reputation as a talker that got him in trouble. "He feared for his life by the guards, he broke sprinkler as a way to get attention and get officials to investigate and put him into protective custody,"said Ponvert. Joslyn claims he told the deputy commissioner of corrections about officer abuse just one day before the March 9th altercation. Joslyn was also the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit, suing the state for sending prisoners to Wallen's Ridge prison in Virginia. A videotape of the incident shows Joslyn being heavily restrained by corrections officers. Ponvert says the force they used was excessive. Medical records showed severe injuries to Joslyn's face and head. He is now planning to sue the state over the alleged beating but Ponvert says this is not just about one prisoner. Commissioner of the Department of Corrections, Theresa Lantz, was contacted for comment and issued this statement: "Upon report of this incident the department of corrections initiated an investigation and it has been referred to the state police." The department says corrections officers Patrick Maia, Shane Maloney and Captain Matthew Regan are all on paid administrative leave pending an investigation. Joslyn has been moved to McDougal Corrections Center. |
MARKETPLACE search vendors | advanced search
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
|
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think