Former Wilcox County Jail Trustee Pleads Guilty in Inmate Abuse Case

ABBEVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT)- Former jail trustee Willie James Caruthers pleaded guilty on Thursday to acting with several others, including law enforcement officials, to assaulting an inmate in the Wilcox County Jail in 2009.

Caruthers also pleaded guilty to conspiring to tampering with a witness in connection with the assault.

Caruthers admitted in his plea hearing that he and several others, including former Wilcox County Sheriff Stacy Bloodsworth, assaulted an inmate breaking his jaw. Caruthers also admitted covering up the fact that law enforcement officials and others used excessive force against two inmates, and also filed false reports surrounding the incidents.

Caruthers faces a maximum sentence of up to 10 years for violating the inmates’ civil rights and a maximum penalty of up to 5 years on the conspiracy charge.