WAVE 3 TV Louisville, KY | Corrections Officers Arrested After Inmate Says They Used Excessive Force

Corrections Officers Arrested After Inmate Says They Used Excessive Force

By Jeff Tang

(LOUISVILLE, April 21st, 2005) -- Three Louisville Metro Corrections officers found themselves on the wrong side of the law this week. They were arrested April 20 and suspended without pay after an inmate accused them of using excessive force while he was in handcuffs. WAVE 3's Jeff Tang investigates.

The three officers -- Sgt. Robert Arnold, 41, and officers Joshua Spenton, 30, and Scott DeJarnette, 28 -- are accused of using excessive force to subdue a jail inmate on January 16 of this year.

Louisville Metro Corrections Department spokeswoman Pam Windsor says they will remain on suspension until the charges are resolved.

Arnold, Spenton and DeJarnette are charged with assault and official misconduct, both misdemeanors. Their arrests warrants state the three white officers hurled racial slurs at inmate Adrian Garner, who is black, before punching and kicking him for four or five minutes.

Garner sustained injuries to his wrist, face and shoulder.

Adrian Garner's sister, Kianda Garner, saw her brother a few weeks after the alleged attack occurred. She says "immediately when he came through the door, my heart dropped to see all these scars and bruises on him."

Kianda took pictures of her brother's injuries, and he filed a complaint with police. In that complaint, Garner says the three officers handcuffed him and pushed him to the ground before repeatedly punching and kicking him.

The report says the beating lasted for about five minutes, and that the officers yelled racial slurs at Garner while attacking him.

Metro Corrections Chief Tom Campbell says they're investigating Garner's allegations. "We take that very seriously, but right now we're waiting to taking any action depending what happens in the judicial process."

The officers will remain suspended without pay until the charges are resolved.

The Fraternal Order of Police is defending the officers. "The officers did what they were trained to do," said FOP spokesman Tony Harris. "They followed proper procedures and restraining inmates."

The FOP points to Adrian Garner's criminal past, which dates back to 1990. It includes charges of assault, robbery and making terrorist threats.

"He's a repeat offender," Harris said. "He knows the system and he knows how to manipulate this system."

Garner's sister, Kianda, admits her brother has had some problems with the law, but says that doesn't give police or corrections officers the right to abuse him. "His arrest records go back 15 years, but that doesn't matter. He shouldn't be beat up. He might be locked up again, but that doesn't give them the right to beat him up and keep abusing him."

She sees similarities between what happened to her brother and what happened to another prisoner in 1998: Adrian Reynolds died after Corrections Officer Timothy Barnes subdued him by standing on his head.

In Garner's complaint, he says Officer Joshua Stenton threatened to use his boots if he didn't cooperate.

"It's time for these things to stop," said Garner's sister. "The officers need to be retrained -- something needs to happen down there."

Garner is currently being held at a prison in Fayette County, while all three corrections officers remain free on their own recognizance. Their first court appearance is set for April 25th.

Online Reporter: Jeff Tang

Online Producer: Michael Dever