BY ROGER SMITH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

LONDON — Three federal prison employees face charges after authorities say they assaulted two inmates and attempted to cover it up at the U.S. Penitentiary Big Sandy in Martin County.

Officers Samuel Patrick, 41, of West Van Lear, and Clinton Pauley, 40, of Ironton, Ohio, were indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in London for allegedly assaulting an inmate and attempting to cover it up. Lt. Kevin Pearce, 37, of Inez, was also indicted for allegedly helping cover up the assault.

Pauley was also charged with assaulting a second inmate and attempting to cover up that assault.

According to the indictment, Patrick and Pauley assaulted an inmate causing injury April 29, 2021, in the lieutenant’s office at USP Big Sandy. The indictment alleges Patrick, Pauley and Pearce then attempted to cover up the assault by falsifying a report.

Patrick and Pearce were also charged with witness tampering. The indictment states that after Pearce and a subordinate BOP employee witnessed the assault, Pearce asked that employee to write an untruthful report omitting the assault. The indictment alleges Patrick pressured that employee to submit to Pearce’s demand.

The indictment alleges that Pauley previously assaulted another inmate March 26, 2021, while the inmate was escorted away from the lieutenant’s office, and subsequently wrote a false incident report to cover up that assault.

If found guilty of assault, the three men face up to 10 years in prison. They also face 20 years in prison on the charges of witness tampering and filing false reports.

The three will appear June 6 in federal court in Pikeville.

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.