New charge against Georgia sheriff added in new indictment
ATLANTA (AP) â" An Atlanta-area sheriff is facing an additional charge in a federal prosecution accusing him of violating the civil rights of people in his agencyâs custody by ordering that they be strapped into a restraint chair without justification and as punishment.
A federal grand jury in April indicted Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill, finding that he had violated the civil rights of four people at the jail. The indictment says the men suffered pain and bodily injury when they were held for hours in a restraint chair even though they had complied with deputies and posed no threat.
The indictment says Hill had regularly received training on the use of restraint chairs, which may be used with a violent or uncontrollable person to prevent injury or property damage if other techniques arenât effective. Force may not be used as punishment, the indictment says.
A new indictment filed last Thursday adds an additional alleged victim.
The new indictment is âa desperate Hail Mary by the government in response to Sheriff Hillâs powerful motion to dismiss,â defense attorney Drew Findling said, adding that the government knew about the allegations in question when it filed its initial indictment and decided not to include them then.
âMost importantly, there is no allegation that Sheriff Hill himself or anyone at his direction physically assaulted or touched this individual,â Findling said.
The new alleged victim in the new indictment was arrested in May 2020, accused of speeding and driving with a suspended Florida driverâs license. Once he was at the jail, Hill ordered him put in a restraint chair even though he wasnât aggressive, the indictment says.
While he was in the chair and while Hill was present, a sheriffâs office employee put a hood over the manâs head and he was hit twice in the face, the indictment says. A jail officer later asked if he was âthe one they beat up?â and then covered the blood on the manâs jail uniform with a white paper smock and took a photo of him, the indictment says.
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