Nov. 21 (UPI) — A federal judge sentenced a former supervisory correctional officer at the Hawaii Community Correctional Center to 144 months for his role in the assault of an inmate and his leadership of a multiyear coverup, the Justice Department said Monday.
Federal prosecutors said that on June 15, 2015, Jonathan Taum, 50, and Taum’s fellow officers repeatedly punched and kicked an inmate in the face, head and body during a transfer.
As the other officers beat the inmate, Taum verbally encouraged them to continue, prosecutors said. The inmate’s jaw, orbital socket and nose were broken during the assault.
Prosecutors said Taum then led the officers in a coverup conspiracy that included writing false reports, submitting false statements to internal affairs and providing false testimony to disciplinary board members.
“The defendant had a nonviolent inmate in his custody and care, and he abused both the inmate and the Constitution by permitting lower-ranking officers to commit an unjustified assault,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
“His subsequent decision to orchestrate a multiyear coverup is an affront to the principles of honesty and integrity that our society expects from law enforcement.
“His sentence makes clear that no one is above the law, and that when officers violate the civil rights of people under their supervision — through violence or obstruction — they will be held accountable.”
U.S. Attorney Clare E. Connors, for the District of Hawaii, said supervisors in correctional facilities are held to a high standard because of their responsibilities in high-risk facilities.
“Protecting the civil rights of everyone in the community, including inmates, is at the heart of our system of justice,” Connors said. “As this case demonstrates, we will prosecute those who criminally violate the civil rights of those in their custody.”
