Overview

• Three former Mississippi Department of Corrections officials, Jessica Hill, LaToya Richardson and Nicole Moore, were sentenced for assaulting inmate L.C. with dangerous weapons while she was in a non-resisting, fetal position.
• Jessica Hill struck the inmate several times with an OC cannister and punched her in the head repeatedly, while Richardson and Moore kicked the inmate in the head and upper torso.
• The three officials pleaded guilty to violating the inmate's Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment.
• Hill and Richardson were sentenced to three years and one month in prison, two years of supervised release and a $1,500 fine, while Moore received a two-year prison sentence, two years of supervised release and the same fine.
• The Justice Department emphasised its commitment to prosecuting prison officials who abuse their authority and violate the law, reiterating that inmates in their custody have the right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment.