Inmate could face charges for assault in Sedgwick County Jail
A Sedgwick County Jail inmate is in a segregation area after he smashed another inmate's head into a wall.
Jail staff found the 38-year-old victim vomiting at 9:57 p.m. on Jan. 4, but the man said he just was not feeling well, and had fallen, hitting his head. When staff returned to check on him in the early morning hours of Jan. 5, they found his condition deteriorating. Medical staff was called in, and he was taken to the hospital.
"While at the hospital, the inmate divulged to hospital staff - not to us - that he had actually been assaulted," said Sheriff Jeff Easter. "He had made the statement that there was some gambling going on, and one of the inmates got upset at him and struck his head against the facility wall, which caused the injury."
The victim was treated and released from the hospital on Jan. 7. He is in a protective custody pod, Easter said.
The two men were housed in the same pod, but not the same cell, Easter said. The pod holds more than 30 inmates. There were no witnesses.
Easter said he wants the jail to be transparent to the public. He said rules inside the jail will be enforced.
"In a setting such as the jail, whether we like it or not, these are folks that have been charged or convicted of crimes, and they're going to figure out a way to still commit crimes inside the jail," he said. "We have to take a look how to diminish those opportunities, and that's something we'll start addressing."
The victim is awaiting trial in a previous case. The suspect inmate has previously been convicted of another crime. Easter said the suspect, a 33-year-old male, could face an aggravated battery charge, if the other man chooses to pursue it.
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