CLEVELAND — Two former guards at the Cuyahoga County Jail -- Nicholas Evans and Timothy Dugan -- faced the other side of the law as they were sentenced Wednesday for assaulting an inmate back in March 2018.
When sentencing was officially handed down, the judge punished Evans with nine months behind bars.
Dugan, meanwhile, was sentenced to serve 10 days in jail -- with three days credited for previous time served.
Sentencing came a few months after Evans and Dugan pleaded guilty to charges in October connected to the attack of inmate Terrance Debose, which happened while he was restrained in a chair. Evans was also accused of turning his body camera off during the assault.
Prior to sentencing, both Evans and Dugan read brief statements to the court.
EVANS: There are no words to fix what I have done. I would like the court to know that I understand the seriousness of my offenses and there are no excuses for my behavior. With that being said, I’d like to apologize to Mr. Debose for the pain I have caused him or his family. He did not deserve to be treated that way. I am truly disappointed and embarrassed by my actions, but I can say that they do not define me. I failed that day. I failed big, but I’m only human. I’m not immune to the stress that life can deal us. I broke, and I’m not proud of it. It’s the truth. I never ran from this mistake. I ask for the court’s leniency. I can assure you this was an isolated incident and what happened that day was outside of my character.
DUGAN: “There were a lot of emotions that day. Things said and done. I always thought I had control over my emotions. That day I didn’t. I failed myself, and most importantly, I failed you [addressing Debose]. I truly do apologize for my actions. I’m genuinely sorry.”
Debose’s attorney also offered a statement prior to sentencing in which his mental health issues were addressed along with the continued suffering he faces as a result of the attack.
“Mr. Debose was subjected to a brutal and inhumane attack by the very hands of officers who were sworn to protect him."
Video of the March 2018 incident obtained by 3News shows Evans and Dugan taking Debose (restrained in a wheelchair for unknown reasons) into isolation before Evans (who appeared to turn off his body camera) eventually struck him multiple times. Dugan later appeared to strike Debose, too, and an affidavit claimed the inmate was then left alone for two hours and ended up suffering an concussion.
We streamed the entire sentencing hearing, which you can watch in full below (WARNING: Video contains disturbing images and adult language):