Carried Out by Inmates
Charge Correction Officer in Assault

By REUVEN BLAU

A Correction Officer was arrested last week for allegedly ordering six teenage inmates to beat two other detainees as a way to enforce discipline at a Rikers Island jail.

MARTIN F. HORN: 'Tarnishes our reputation.'

According to authorities, Correction Officer Lloyd Nicholson also personally assaulted another inmate with a wooden stick at the Robert N. Davoren Center.

Details of Scheme

The Department of Investigation uncovered a systemic program allegedly run by Mr. Nicholson, who joined the Correction Department in June 2001. Investigators said that Officer Nicholson used the select group of inmates to enforce discipline and rules of conduct in exchange for preferential treatment, which included allowing them to extort commissary and telephone privileges as well as personal property from other inmates.

Authorities alleged that Officer Nicholson benefited from the scheme by not having to constantly monitor his post during his overnight tour of duty. The alleged assaults occurred in May and June 2007. One of the victims was taken to Elmhurst Hospital for treatment of a collapsed lung, investigators said.

"This Correction Officer was supposed to maintain order at the correctional facility," DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn said in a statement. "Instead, these charges stem from an investigation that showed that he used force and violence during his tours of duty and brazenly manipulated adolescent inmates to do his bidding in exchange for favors."

She said the allegations shouldn't besmirch the many Correction Officers who serve in jails with "integrity," noting that a Warden stepped forward to alert DOI about the scheme.

Could Serve 15 Years

Mr. Nicholson, 35, was indicted by a grand jury on multiple charges of gang assault, assault, and official misconduct. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted of the most-serious offense.

Last week, he was released on a personal recognizance bond, the Bronx District Attorney's Office said. The Correction Department suspended him without pay, said agency spokesman Stephen Morello.

Correction Officers Benevolent Association President Norman Seabrook said the union would support Officer Nicholson. "The COBA executive board and I have always and will continue to represent each of our members to the fullest extent of the law," he said in a statement. "We will do everything possible to ensure Officer Nicholson's rights are protected."

The six inmates charged with beating other detainees were indicted on gang assault and assault charges in October, according to The Bronx DA.

"If true, these charges tarnish the good work and the well-deserved reputation of the vast majority of our officer who do their jobs conscientiously every day," Correction Commissioner Martin F. Horn said in a statement. "The Department of Correction will not tolerate the kind of behavior alleged in this case."