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Former Angola Major Found Guilty – Twice – in Excessive Force Case

by Scott Grammer

On January 26, 2018, former prison major Daniel Davis, 41, was convicted of conspiracy to cover up the beating of an unnamed prisoner at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. The prisoner did not resist when Davis began yanking the prisoner’s shackles, but when he fell face-first to the ground, Davis and three other guards “punched, kicked, and stomped on” the handcuffed and shackled prisoner, resulting in a “bloody gash under the eye, a dislocated shoulder, broken ribs, and a collapsed lung,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The other guards involved in the incident pleaded guilty. 

Davis was also found guilty of perjury, obstructing justice, writing a false report and falsifying official records. [See: PLN, July 2018, p.62; April 2018, p.63; Mar. 2017, p.63].

Then, in a separate trial that ended in November 2018, Davis was found guilty of willfully depriving the prisoner of his right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. The conspiracy and perjury counts could result in Davis spending five years in federal prison, while the excessive force count carries up to 10 years and the obstruction convictions carry up to 20 years. 

“Mr. Davis abused the justice system by beating an inmate, writing false reports, and using his influence and power as a corrections officer to encourage others to lie. The Justice Department will continue to prosecute correctional officers who violate federal criminal law,” stated Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband.

Davis has not yet been sentenced. 

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Sources: justice.gov, nationofchange.org, nola.com

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