wednesday, november 3, 1999
flordia gaurd charged in inmate's death
STARKE, Fla. corrections officer has been attack on a death row inmate who died after a violent confrontation with officers at Florida State Prison.
was charged with ag-
Sgt. Montrez Lucas, 30, gravated battery, battery on an inmate and . .. ....
W-influence a report, court records show. He had not been arrested as of yesterday.
A source close to the investigation confirmed that the case against Lucas was in connection with the Frank Valdes case.
A grand jury in Gainesville on Friday issued a document that Circuit Judge Stan Morris ordered sealed and then transferred to Bradford County District Court
Lucas was one of nine guards suspended after Valdes died July 17 after an altercation that started when the inmate was being removed from his isolation cell on X-wing for making threats to guards.
A report Lucas filed. with prison officials said
Lucas was notified by other officers that Valdes was not breathing. He entered the cell and saw the officers performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the inmate. A few minutes later, Valdes was placed
&etcher and taken to a clinic.
Officers claimed Valdes, 28, was injured when he repeatedly threw himself off his bunk onto the floor. An autopsy, however, showed he had boot marks on his body, all his ribs were broken and his testicles were swollen.
A closed hearing will be held tomorrow in Gainesville in connection with the sealed report.
Valdes, who had been diagnosed with latent schizophrenia, spent the last two years and three months of his life locked up alone on X-wing, home to the state's most violent and volatile inmates.
Valdes was on death row for the fatal shooting of Palm Beach County prison guard Fred Griffis while helping another inmate escape in June 1987.
webmaster notes: maybe this should be in the national inquirer titled "gaurds watch inmate throw him self off bunk on to floor and boot marks magicly appear all over inmates body, inmates testicles magiclly swell up, and all inmates ribs are broken."