Two of five Maryland prison inmates plead to assaulting correctional officers
Two Maryland state inmates were sentenced Tuesday to an additional 18 months in state prison for assaulting correctional officers last summer in the yard at Roxbury Correctional Institution south of Hagerstown.
Five inmates were charged following a fight in the prison yard July 17, with one of the correctional officers being choked.
Four of the five inmates were in Washington County District Court on Tuesday for potential trials. Of the three inmates who still didn't have an attorney, one pleaded. The other inmate who pleaded was represented by a public defender.
More crime news: Attempted-murder charge dropped in 2022 Hagerstown fight case involving stabbing
Avon Taylor, 36, and Franklin Evans, 32, both pleaded guilty to second-degree assault of a Division of Corrections employee.
District Court Judge Eric W. Schaffer sentenced both to an additional 18 months in state prison, the sentence recommended by Assistant State's Attorney Dakota Parrish in extending the plea deals.
Schaffer is the District Court administrative judge for Washington and Frederick counties.
"The State of Maryland takes assaults of Division of Corrections guards and employees very seriously," Parrish said after the second plea hearing. "Given the allegations in this case, the state feels that an 18-month consecutive sentence is appropriate and is satisfied with the result."
Second-degree assault of a state prison employee has a maximum penalty of 10 years and/or a $2,500 fine, according to court records.
During his hearing, Taylor did not choose to make a statement to the judge before sentencing. He did not have an attorney as of Tuesday's hearing.
Evans told Schaffer he was "trying to move forward" and "working on trying to get home and not staying in prison."
By law, Schaffer said he couldn't suspend any of the 18-month sentence.
Parrish explained after the hearings that, by state law, the sentence for assaulting a correctional officer must be consecutive to other sentences and none of it can be suspended.
Christopher Firor, 40, faces two counts of second-degree assault on a corrections employee, while Dominetreous Anthony, 36, and Devahn McFadden, 30, each face one count on that charge.
McFadden previously also faced a felony count of first-degree assault of a corrections employee. Parrish said in an interview that the state's attorney's office decided to drop the felony charge.
Firor's and Anthony's trials were postponed to June, according to their online case dockets. McFadden's trial is scheduled for late July.
Details of the Roxbury prison yard fight between inmates and correctional officers
The July 17 fight that broke out in the prison yard led to four officers "requiring nonemergency medical evaluation," court documents state.
Parrish said the incident began when a sixth inmate was noncompliant and struggled with officers when there was an attempt to handcuff him.
Then Evans, McFadden, Anthony and Taylor "engage with staff in an aggressive" manner, charging documents state.
Evans struck a lieutenant in the head and face several times, starting a larger fight, Parrish told the judge on Tuesday. Evans fought with the lieutenant until staff got control of Evans, Parrish said.
As a correctional officer tried to secure Anthony, Anthony refused to be cuffed and started pulling away from the officer and turned to allegedly strike the officer, according to charging documents. Taylor approached the same officer from behind and started hitting him in the back, knocking him down.
Inmates then began kicking that officer while he was on the ground, court records state.
A correctional officer, trying to follow orders and handcuff McFadden, grabbed the inmate from behind and McFadden turned and started to pull away, charging documents state. The two fell to the ground and McFadden allegedly wrapped his arm around the officer's neck and tried to choke him. The officer told an investigator he started to hit McFadden because he was losing his breath, records state. Another officer responded and they cuffed McFadden.
Firor is accused of jumping on the lieutenant, knocking him and a sergeant to the ground, court records state.
The five inmates were transferred to state prisons near Cumberland, Md., following the incident, court records state. Those prisons have maximum security, whereas RCI and the other two state prisons south of Hagerstown have medium security.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Two Maryland inmates plead in prison yard fight with officers
