CLEVELAND — The trial continued Wednesday for two corrections officers accused in the brutal beating of an inmate at the Cuyahoga County Jail.
Prosecutors allege that in February 2018, inmate Joshua Castleberry was assaulted. The defense argued his injuries were inconsistent with his account and that Castleberry was combative.
Video shows what happened before and after the incident, but there were no cameras rolling inside the cell where the injures occurred.
According to prosecutors, Officer John Wilson assaulted Castleberry and Officer Jason Jozwiak then denied immediate access to a nurse.
On Wednesday, Castleberry took the stand and described how the damage to his face was so severe, that a tooth became lodged in his nose.
“It was instant pain, on a scale of one to ten, it was a ten,” he said. “I remember my head just bouncing.”
And he claims it all began over a sandwich.
Castleberry said his sandwich was moldy, and that when he asked for a new one, the officer refused. Castleberry admits he then swore at him and things turned violent.
His story is now at the center of a jail plagued by recent allegations of abuse and the first of them to go to a jury trial.
There may be more.
Five additional Cuyahoga County corrections officers and a warden have also been indicted in separate cases.
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Records show Castleberry had been booked on charges of domestic violence involving his brother and attempted assault involving the arresting officer.