CLEVELAND (AP) — A corrections officer accused of beating a handcuffed inmate at a county jail earlier this year has been charged with assault, marking the third officer charged with a crime there in less than two weeks.
Reion Cook, 47, is also charged with interfering with civil rights and dereliction of duty. He was put on paid administrative leave and jailed pending an arraignment hearing.
Cook has served at the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland since October 2001, according to county records. Authorities said Cook “physically assaulted” a 42-year-old man on Feb. 6 as he was handcuffed and booked into the jail on a drunken-driving charge.
Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association attorney Adam Chaloupka told Cleveland.com that he believes Cook acted appropriately and should not have been charged. He said Cook has never been disciplined and has been an exemplary officer for more than two decades.
The arrest marks the third time a Cuyahoga County Jail officer has been charged with crimes in the past nine days. The two other officers are accused of sexually assaulting inmates in unrelated cases.
