Two Fayette corrections officers fired, one suspended in inmate assault
Two Fayette County corrections officers have been fired and one suspended after being accused of using excessive force against an inmate who needed to be hospitalized after the incident earlier this month.
The Fayette County Prison Board voted Tuesday to terminate Amadeus Marinucci and Ryan Sigley from their positions at the jail, while Kris Upole was placed on a 10-day suspension, said Fayette County District Attorney Mike Aubele, who sits on the board.
The three officers had been placed on administrative leave last week in connection with the assault of Robert Stimmell, 37, on Oct. 8, when Uniontown police brought the man to the jail after arresting him on a bench warrant for terroristic threats and harassment.
The incident occurred in a part of the jail without cameras used for strip searches.
First taken to the WVU Uniontown Memorial Hospital, Stimmell, of Uniontown, was then transferred to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, W.Va., for treatment of a brain bleed and injuries to his head and face. Stimmell was released from the hospital last week and taken back to the jail.
Stimmell waived a preliminary hearing on the charges Monday, and has a formal arraignment scheduled for Nov. 19.
Aubele said the board had looked at statements made regarding the incident, as well as evaluating whether the conduct followed policy and procedure at the jail.
All three of the board’s decisions passed by a 4-0 vote, said Aubele, who abstained along with President Judge Steve Leskinen. Prison Board Vice Chairman Scott Dunn was not at the meeting.
Aubele said a decision on whether to press criminal charges against any of the officers should come sometime next week.
“The investigation’s been geared toward whether or not what happened was excessive or justified, or whether a crime was committed during the course of the incident that happened,” Aubele said.