Five former corrections officers at the Richwood Correctional Center have been indicted for their roles in a conspiracy to physically assault five inmates. They are also being indicted for their roles in covering up their actions.
Roderick Douglas, Christopher Loring, Demario Shaffer, Quintail Credit, and David Parker, were charged in a seven-count indictment by a federal grand jury in Monroe, Louisiana, on March 29, 2018. The indictment was unsealed and made public Thursday upon initial court appearances of the defendants.
According to the indictment, Douglas was a Captain, Loring was a Lieutenant, Shaffer was a Sergeant, and Credit and Parker were correctional officers. The indictment charges in Count One that the defendants conspired to inflict cruel and unusual punishment upon five inmates by spraying a chemical agent in their face and eyes while the inmates were handcuffed, compliant, kneeling on the floor, and not posing a physical threat to anyone. Count Two charges defendants Douglas, Loring, Shaffer, Credit, and Parker with the infliction of cruel and unusual punishment against the inmates, and Count Three charges defendant Loring with failing to intervene in the assaults.
The indictment alleges that the assaults charged in Counts One through Three involved a dangerous weapon and resulted in bodily injury to the inmates. Count Four charges the defendants with conspiring to submit false reports concerning the incident, and Counts Five through Seven charge defendants Douglas, Shaffer, and Parker, respectively, with making false statements to the FBI about the incident.