A former corrections officer of the Maury County, Tennessee, Jail was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, to five years in prison, officials stated.
James Stewart Justice, alias James Thomas, was previously convicted of falsifying a record in a federal civil rights investigation for a report he wrote in response to allegations that he had sexually abused an inmate in his custody.
“Everyone who serves in law enforcement knows of their duty of candor,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “That duty of candor is at its highest when responding to serious allegations such as the sexual abuse of an inmate in the officer’s care. The Civil Rights Division will continue to vigorously prosecute officers who disregard that duty and obstruct federal civil rights investigations.”
According to court documents, Justice (formerly James Stewart Thomas) filed a false report in response to allegations of sexually abusing an inmate under his supervision at a hospital.
In his report, he did the following:
- Claimed he informed two Maury County Jail supervisors that the inmate made sexual advances toward him, which was false.
- Alleged the supervisors advised him not to file a report about these supposed advances, which was also false.
- Omitted later claims to investigators that he had a sexual relationship with the inmate after the inmate’s release from custody