Officers Tried To Cover Up Beating At Essex County Prison: Feds

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Three correctional officers and a sergeant at the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark have been charged with conspiring to violate a pretrial detainee’s civil rights, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Friday.

Officers Angel Chaparro, 38, Damion James, 40, and Luis Ortiz, 29, and Sgt. Herman Pride, 51, are each charged by complaint with one count of conspiracy to violate civil rights, federal prosecutors said.

Pride and Ortiz were arrested and had their initial court appearances on March 4. Both were released on bail.

Chaparro and James were arrested Friday morning and will have their initial appearances by videoconference, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors released the following allegations:

“On the evening of Aug. 17, 2020, a federal pretrial detainee at Essex County Correctional Facility (ECCF) squirted a mixture of urine, yogurt, and milk onto a correctional officer. The detainee subsequently was transported to a disciplinary cell, where Chaparro, James, and Ortiz assaulted the detainee, striking him multiple times. Pride did not intervene to stop the assault. At the end of the assault, Pride said, ‘Okay, that’s enough.’ During the assault, James’ watch fell off. He and other officers returned to the detainee’s cell to retrieve his watch.”

Prosecutors continued:

“The detainee asked for, and was initially denied, medical assistance. The victim later told Pride that if Pride would provide the victim with medical attention, the victim would lie and say that he had fallen off his bed. Pride refused to provide any medical attention. Two days later, the detainee was finally taken to the emergency room at University Hospital in Newark. He was diagnosed with large swelling and tenderness in the right side of his face and discoloration and bruising around his right eye.”

The defendants all were required to submit documentation regarding their use of force. None of them submitted any such reports. Instead, Chaparro signed a false report indicating that no force had been used, prosecutors alleged.

Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig credited special agents of the FBI and the Essex County Correctional Facility Internal Affairs Bureau with the investigation leading to the charges.

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