NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A Bronx grand jury indicted three New York City Department of Correction officers on Wednesday for allegedly lying in a report after one of them punched a Rikers Island inmate unprovoked.
Surveillance video showed Carl Williams, 31, punch an inmate who was standing non-threateningly with his hands by his side in a Rikers housing unit around 6:15 a.m. on Oct. 14, 2021, according to the Bronx District Attorney’s Office.
Roy Dewar, 58, and Jatan Das, 64, witnessed the unprovoked attack, but the three officers filed reports to the DOC claiming the inmate was the aggressor and that use of force was justified.
“We must hold Correction Officers to a high standard,” said Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark. “These defendants violated the trust put in them by allegedly filing false instruments about an officer’s assault on an inmate. Just as the alleged violence will not be tolerated, neither will the coverup, especially in this turbulent time in Rikers Island.”
The men were indicted on charges of offering a false instrument for filing, falsifying business records and official misconduct. Williams was also charged with assault.
Rikers has been plagued with reports of unsanitary conditions, unchecked violence, overcrowding and chronic absenteeism among staff.
The Legal Aid Society and New York City Comptroller Brad Lander have called for a federal judge to appoint a receivership to take control of the prison away from the DOC in order to force reforms and end the human rights abuses there.
Williams, Dewar and Das are due back in court April 19.
The DOC suspended the officers without pay pending the outcome of the court case, according to the department.
“The indictment of these correction officers is in no way a reflection of the hard-working women and men who represent New York’s Boldest," DOC Commissioner Louis Molina told 1010 WINS in a comment. "Since day one, I reaffirmed my commitment to hold all staff accountable. Clearly immediate action should have been taken under the previous leadership when this incident occurred — timely and meaningful action is required for sustainable reform to take hold. The conduct alleged here is unacceptable and a violation of the officers’ oath and duty to this city and our agency. ”
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