Former ADOC Lieutenant Pleads Guilty to Assaulting a Restrained Inmate and Fabricating Reports To Cover Up His Actions

A former lieutenant at the Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) has pleaded guilty to using excessive force on an inmate and subsequently providing false information in an official report to conceal his actions. 

The guilty plea came from Mohammad Shahid Jenkins (pictured above), a former Shift Commander at William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility with over 20 years of law enforcement experience.

In accordance with the plea agreement, Jenkins engaged in excessive force against inmate V.R. on February 16, 2022. 

Jenkins admitted to willfully depriving V.R. of his right to be free from excessive force, which included kicking, hitting, using chemical spray, striking with a can of chemical spray, and hitting with a shoe. These actions occurred while V.R. was restrained inside a holding cell and posed no threat. 

Jenkins further confessed that he repeatedly re-entered the holding cell and continued assaulting V.R. over approximately five minutes, out of sight from other officers and inmates. The use of dangerous weapons, such as chemical spray and the can, caused bodily injury to V.R. 

Following this assault, Jenkins authored a false incident report, intentionally omitting any mention of the use of force against V.R. and providing a fabricated account of V.R.'s transportation within the facility. 

Jenkins also admitted to lying to investigators by denying the use of force on V.R.

Moreover, Jenkins acknowledged using force on another inmate, D.H., on a different occasion at Donaldson. On November 29, 2021, he willfully deprived D.H. of his right to be free from excessive force. 

This included repeatedly spraying D.H. with chemical spray while he was handcuffed behind his back and compliant, hitting D.H. in the head with the can of chemical spray, and delivering an open-hand strike to D.H.'s head while he was affected by the chemical spray.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division expressed that senior law enforcement officers like Jenkins influence their junior counterparts, emphasizing the importance of holding individuals accountable for violating civil rights, even within correctional facilities.

U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona for the Northern District of Alabama stressed that there is no tolerance for corrections officers who commit such offenses, pledging aggressive prosecution against those who abuse their authority.

Special Agent in Charge Carlton L. Peeples of the FBI Birmingham Field Office emphasized the need to protect the civil rights of all individuals, including those in the custody of law enforcement. He stated that the FBI remains committed to holding accountable those who abuse their privileges and abandon their responsibilities as law enforcement officers.

Jenkins is set to be sentenced on December 19, potentially facing a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for the excessive force charge related to V.R. and 20 years in prison for the obstruction charge. 

He also faces up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.

 

In another news, a former high school teacher in Babylon, New York, has admitted to engaging in a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student nearly a decade ago. See detailed story here

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