Rookie Went to DOI
Charge Captain, Assistant Deputy Warden In Inmate's Beating

By REUVEN BLAU

Two veteran jail supervisors have been arrested for allegedly trying to cover up an assault on an inmate that occurred in front of 15 new Correction Officers during a training session.

SID SCHWARTZBAUM: Sees a railroading.

According to investigators, Capt. Sherman Graham punched Brian Mitchell without provocation after he refused to submit to a strip-search at the Robert N. Davoren Center on Rikers Island on Oct. 4, 2006. In his use-of-force report, Captain Graham claimed that the inmate hit him first and that he struck back in self-defense, authorities said.

His immediate supervisor, Assistant Deputy Warden Gail Lewis, was also arrested and charged with filing a false report that corroborated Captain Graham's version of events.

Got Tip From Recruit

The Department of Investigation began looking into the matter after the agency received a tip from a new recruit following an anti-corruption lecture that DOI conducted in October. Investigators allege that Captain Graham ordered the trainees to write false reports about the incident as well.

RONALD WHITFIELD: Case of overcharging.

"These supervisors are not only accused of abusing their positions to cover up an inmate assault but also compelling new Correction recruits - who were undergoing training - to misrepresent the truth, a sad introduction and one not befitting the DOC," DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn said in a statement issued shortly after the charges were announced on June 1.

The unions representing the officers, however, steadfastly maintained that their members were innocent and argued that the city was trumping up the charges. Sidney Schwartzbaum, the president of the Assistant Deputy Wardens'/Deputy Wardens' Association, noted that Captain Graham and Deputy Warden Lewis were charged with a felony offense while former Commissioner Bernard B. Kerik was allowed to plead guilty to unclassified misdemeanors for accepting $165,000 in home-renovation help from individuals tied to organized crime.

Sees Double Standard

"Talk about different standards for the protected connected," Mr. Schwartzbaum said. "The civil servants continue to be railroaded while the elite get the kid-glove treatment."

Ronald W. Whitfield, the president of the Correction Captains' Association, said he was surprised the department moved to criminally charge Captain Graham as opposed to handling the matter internally via a disciplinary hearing.

"Now all of a sudden the department is trying to indict them," he said during a phone interview from Rikers Island where he was meeting with a group of Captains to discuss the situation. "It sends the message that the department and the administration do not back their supervisors. They are tying our hands, so to speak."

Captain Graham was charged with one count of attempted assault, a misdemeanor that is punishable by a maximum sentence of up to 90 days in jail, according to The Bronx District Attorney's Office, which will prosecute the case. He was also charged with 16 felony counts of falsifying business records and offering a false instrument for filing. Those felony offenses are punishable by up to four years in jail.

Charges Against ADW

Assistant Deputy Warden Lewis was indicted on one count each of falsifying business records, offering a false instrument for filing, and official misconduct.

The latest case against jail officers comes shortly after a Bronx Supreme Court Justice dismissed charges against a Correction Officer accused of beating an inmate after another prisoner slashed another officer in the face.

"The scales of justice are supposed to be blind when it comes to administrative justice," Mr. Schwartzbaum said, referring to the latest charges. "The Department of Correction's history reveals the selective administration of justice by the Inspector General."