2 Bell County Jailers Arrested on Charges They Beat Up Shackled Inmate in His Cell

Two corrections officers were arrested this week after being accused of beating an inmate in his Bell County Jail cell and violating his civil rights.Kevin Miller, 34, and Terrance Gardner, 28, turned themselves in Monday after an investigation by the Texas Rangers, the Temple Daily Telegram reports. The investigation began after 23-year-old inmate Jvareus Aquer Pratt told his mother, Jeanette Cooper, that he had been beaten and kicked by several Bell County jailers while he was shackled and handcuffed.Pratt has been in Bell County Jail since late February on charges of assault of a family member with and injury to a child, with bail set at $125,000.After Cooper told Sheriff Eddy Lange and other agencies, the sheriff began an internal investigation that brought up "disturbing events" that warranted assistance from the Texas Rangers, sheriff's spokesman T.J. Cruz said.Miller and Gardner, both from Killeen, have since been released after posting $5,000 bond and are on unpaid administrative leave.  Continue reading...

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