Two employees of the Wyandotte County Sheriff's Department have been charged in connection with an altercation involving an inmate at the county jail in September.
David Toland, 47, was charged with felony aggravated battery for physical contact with an inmate that could have caused "great bodily harm, disfigurement or death."
The alleged incident occurred at the Wyandotte County Detention Center on September 5, though neither the District Attorney's Office nor the Sheriff's Department has provided details about what happened. Thursday, a Sheriff's Department spokesman declined to provide information about the current condition of the yet unidentified inmate or the potential injuries that inmate suffered.
In addition to the felony charge, Toland, as well as sheriff's deputy Marcus Johnson, 34, face charges for misdemeanor mistreatment of an inmate. Johnson also faces a misdemeanor assault charge.
According to Sheriff Don Ash, one deputy was placed on administrative leave after Ash conducted a preliminary review of the September incident. At that point, he also referred the matter to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. As of Thursday, both Toland and Johnson are on leave.
In a statement Thursday, Sheriff Don Ash said the incident remains under investigation by an outside agency, and a spokesman told KCUR until that investigation is complete, the department will not offer any more details about the alleged incident.
"As Sheriff, I hold myself and my employees to the highest moral, ethical, and legal standards," Ash's statement read. "This incident does not reflect our organizational values or my personal values and I take it very seriously."
Andrea Tudhope is a reporter at KCUR 89.3. Email her at andreat@kcur.org, and follow her on Twitter @andreatudhope.
