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EXTRA CONTENT: Deputy Jailer on administrative leave following assault allegation
Posted On 26 Aug 2009
To read the entire text of the lawsuit, click here.
A second Whitley County Detention Center inmate has filed a federal lawsuit against Jailer Ken Mobley, and other staff at the jail, claiming he was abused and denied medical treatment.
William J. Young, 32, asks in a civil complaint filed Aug. 20 in U.S. District Court in London that Mobley, Chief Deputy Jailer Bob O’Neill, Deputy Jailers Cecil Powers and Joe Fuson, and Head Nurse Melinda Moses all be fired and be forced to issue him a public apology for his alleged mistreatment. He is also asking for $10 million in damages.
Young claims that on July 3, Powers took him out of his cell and placed him in isolation for "laughing about a joke one of the other cell mates made …" He says Powers yelled at him and slapped him, them pushed him down on the ground and stepped on his left shoulder.
Young says Powers came back later and "threatened and demeaned" him outside of the cell.
In the complaint, Young claims Fuson took the shirt Powers stepped on as evidence of the assault, but that it "disappeared" when Kentucky Department of Corrections officials came to investigate.
Mobley said Tuesday that Powers has been placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of the complaint being taken to the Whitley County Grand Jury early next month.
"I put Cecil on leave until it is all cleared up," Mobley said. "I had to. I just don’t want to do nothing. He was the one that supposedly shut him down. I don’t know what happened because I wasn’t there. When they make an accusation you got to follow through on it."
Young claims that Powers used to work at the jail, but was dismissed. He said O’Neill hired him back.
Mobley denies that, saying Powers was never terminated as a jail employee.
Young is awaiting trial on burglary, kidnapping, sex abuse and attempted murder charges. He is also charged with misdemeanor assault.
Also in the lawsuit, Young complains that he caught MSRA (staff infection) and was refused medical attention from jail staff and was denied prescribed medications. He said he ended up treating the infection himself.
Filing the complaint without the help of an attorney, Young said he has tried to use the jail’s administrative complaint process to no avail.
"We file a grievance form turn it in and it either gets answered or goes in the trash," he writes. "I filled out a form, then an incident report and produced evidence of the assault. I also asked to file charges for at least a week. Nothing happened."
Since filing the complaint, Young has been moved to the McCreary County Detention Center in Whitley City. Mobley said it is typical for inmates who file lawsuits against jail staff to be moved to avoid any possible accusations of retribution.
No formal response has yet been filed in the case.
The lawsuit is the second against the jail this month. On Aug. 10, another inmate at the jail, Willie Lowe, filed a federal lawsuit against Mobley, O’Neill and Deputy Jailers Greg Rhodes and Jason Strunk for cursing at him and threatening him. He also said he was denied medical treatment.
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william young is evil. if cecil beat him thank god maybe william will think twice before he hits another woman or abuses her in horrible ways. william aka paco just wants money.
Regina, those people that you have no sympathy for are human beings. regardless of guilt or innocense they do not deserve to be abused. complaining about the air conditioning or food is laughable because they are not in a holiday inn, but physical and even mental and verbal abuse is no laughing matter and needs to be investigated. in a way i feel sorry for you, because you obviously do not have a heart.
Well Regina aren’t people that are in there prior to trial innocent until proven guilty? Why should they be treated badly if they are presumed innocent? What if it was you or a family member of yours that was arrested and you didn’t have the money to bond out how would you feel then?
I’m sorry, but I have no sympathy for folks who choose to allow themselves to get put in jail. There are rules and laws that everyone is expected to follow and if you don’t, you go to jail. If the air condition is not to your liking, STAY OUT OF JAIL. If the food is not what you prefer, STAY OUT OF JAIL. In my 37 years, I have managed to NOT go to jail and it’s not been that hard. No sympathy from me!! Sorry!
The cops wont investigate their own. They might come and look around, and hand out some more abuse to the person making the complaint. But, the cops will go with what ever the jail employees or jailer tells them that happen, and call it a day and bid them farewell.
Did the cops investigate it he asks..lol
The cops wont investigate their own. They might come and look around, and hand out some more abuse to the person making the complaint. But, the cops will go with what ever the jail employees or jailer tells them that happen, and call it a day and bid them farewell.
Did the cops investigate it he asks..lol
did the cops investigate this or did they just keep it quiet at the jail?
Well I kinda know how those guys feel, My son has been in there several times and was threatened by Powers and Bob O’Neil Bob told him he’d beat him so bad he’d be hospitalized. Well you know thats very very scary knowing your LIFE is in THIER HANDS. I’d lay awake worring wondering if he was beat or whatever. I know he went to hospital a few times not sure why hes afraid to talk much. What are you suspose to do when your just poor people like us no money or pull. Sure hope it all gets straightened out, And someone has the balls to stand up and take a stand. My prayers are with you guys.
Well, here we have another person saying that they have been mistreated. Where is the dept of corrections I just have a problem that all of these folks are complaing about the same things. How long before the peeople who are in charge of checking these things look into this? I have a real problem with people being mistreated as I beleive that most folks would. What do these people get paid for to drive nice cars abuse folks and get paid tax money to do it?
I was an inmate at Whitley Co. Detention Center 2 years ago. The conditions were so horrible, the cell I was in had no heat or air, and the humidity was so bad the moisture driped from the ceiling like rain. The walls and the floor of course were also wet. I was in for a DUI and slept on the floor for about a month. The overcrowded cells are a major problem. Some cells they let the inmates run, because the extremly violent inmates are too much trouble to watch constantly. They put me in the cell with them and I was constantly threatened, and what little snacks I could afford was stolen by the gang like inmates. That was when I told them I had to be transfered to a different cell for fearing for my life. I am a 54 year old man that was no problem to anyone, but because I told a 18 year old boy to turn down the rap music he was watching on TV at 8am. I was stripped of all my clothes and was put in solitary confinement for an entire week. then after 3 days the overcrowding came to solitary. They are 1 man cells that are very small, but they put another naked man in the small cell with me. The place is poorly run, and while I was there staff infections where running wild. I know jail is not a Holiday Inn, but this facility serves hate, poor food, unsanitary conditions, and cruel and unusual punishment is saying lightly what is dished out at Whitley Co. Detention Center. This place needs to be torn down and the staff and jailer fired for being so sadistic. The staff, of course had friends and relitives that where inmates and they got good treatment. This facility needs to be closed and rebuilt. If you want more information you may contact me.