Inmate sues Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office over alleged assaults
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – A Hamilton County Jail inmate has filed a federal lawsuit against the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office.
Ronald Spence, Jr. has been in custody since 2022 on multiple charges including attempted first-degree murder.
According to a Hamilton County Courthouse affidavit, he pistol whipped and shot the mother of his child after an argument, and then ran off with his young son according to that arrest report.
However, Spence is alleging in a 14-page federal lawsuit that he has been the subject of numerous assaults.
The lawsuit filed in the Eastern District Federal Court of Tennessee last week paints a pattern of assaults targeting Ronald Spence Jr.
The most discussed incident in the lawsuit occurred on February 7, 2023.
The lawsuit alleges that during a cell block transfer, a correction’s deputy named Cerion Carson assigned to Spence asked him to change clothes.
Portion of lawsuit discussing alleged February incident.
When Spence asked why he needed to change clothes to move units, the lawsuit states he was placed in handcuffs and then subsequently pushed into a door and beaten by Carson.
The lawsuit further alleges that when Spence escaped Carson, another deputy named Michael Craig dragged him into another room where he was further beaten by Carson.
The lawsuit claims Spence lost vision in his left eye and was denied adequate medical treatment in the weeks following the assault, with only receiving eye drops and a steroid shot to remedy his vision issues, and never saw a doctor.
Spence in the lawsuit alleges he experienced far more than just the initial assault behind me here at the Hamilton County Jail last February.
In one alleged incident in July 2023, the lawsuit states that Spence was pushed into walls of the jail on the way to a virtual hearing.
In another alleged incident in September 2023, the lawsuit states that corrections deputies slammed Spence’s hand into a door access flap as retaliation for a request to use the phone.
Portion of lawsuit discussing September incident.
Later that month, the lawsuit alleges that one corrections guard allowed multiple inmates into Spence’s cell and let the inmates assault him.
In response to these allegations, an attorney for the Sheriff’s Office sent us the following statement:
“Because issues in pending lawsuits are to be adjudicated in the courts, Hamilton County and the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office generally don’t comment on cases.
However, we would like to clarify that neither party was reassigned. Due to the nature of the incident, Sheriff Garrett directed Internal Affairs to conduct an investigation, and both parties were immediately placed on administrative leave. Former HCSO employee, Michael Craig, resigned during the Internal Affairs investigation. Additionally, a Loudermill (pretermination) hearing was scheduled for former HCSO employee, Cerion Carson, on July 12, 2023. Carson resigned one day prior to the hearing; however, a hearing was held in his absence, during which Sheriff Garrett determined that Carson’s employment with the HCSO would have been terminated had he not resigned. Neither Craig nor Carson is eligible for rehire with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office.
In addition to the actions taken above, due to the sustained allegations of policy violations and the use of force involved in this incident, Sheriff Garrett referred the case to Hamilton County District Attorney, Coty Wamp, for review. It was subsequently referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their review by General Wamp.”
The suit argues that Spence suffered numerous Constitutional violations, and is asking the Federal District Court for at least a million dollars in damages.
Spence remains at the Hamilton County Jail where he is on a $250,000 dollar bond, and was in court on Monday on a motions hearing on his charges from 2022.
