BATAVIA, Ohio — Four Adams County jail corrections officers have been criminally charged following an independent investigation led by the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office into the treatment of an inmate who was later hospitalized, according to the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office.
Corrections Officers Terry Akers, 40; Danny Kiskadden, 36; Chad Stanforth, 41; and Kiara Williams, 21, were each charged July 28 with one count of dereliction of duty, a second-degree misdemeanor, through the Adams County Municipal Court, the sheriff’s office said. Williams was also charged with one count of falsification, a first-degree misdemeanor, after investigators determined she allegedly falsified jail log entries.
Clermont County Sheriff Chris Stratton received a request April 23 from Adams County Sheriff Ken Dick, made through the Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association, to investigate allegations that the four officers failed to follow rules governing operation of the Adams County Jail, according to the release. Stratton assigned an investigator from his office’s Professional Standards and Special Investigations Section to the case. The Adams County Prosecutor’s Office recused itself from the matter, and the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office was appointed to assist with the investigation and prosecution, the release said.
The investigation focused on the officers’ conduct between April 17 and April 20 while they were on duty at the Adams County Jail during the incarceration of a former inmate, according to the sheriff’s office.
Investigators determined that on April 14, jail staff removed the inmate from his assigned housing unit and placed him in a holding cell in the jail’s booking area after he allegedly became combative with staff and other inmates and expressed concern for his own safety, the release said. On April 15, after staff observed a change in his behavior, the inmate was taken to Adams County Regional Medical Center for evaluation and then returned to the same holding cell, where he remained until April 20, according to the sheriff’s office.
At about 6:45 a.m. April 20, jail supervisors found the inmate unresponsive in the holding cell, the release said. Emergency medical crews took him to Adams County Regional Medical Center, and he was later transferred to Mercy Hospital Anderson for further treatment, according to the sheriff’s office.
Criminal charges were filed after the investigation’s completion and in consultation with the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office, the release said.
Suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Questions about the charges or the investigation should be directed to the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office at 513-261-1325, according to the release.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office.