3 ex-corrections officers charged in apparent inmate suicide
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) – Three former Tennessee corrections officers are facing charges related to the apparent suicide of an inmate in September.
A Tennessee Bureau of Investigation news release Friday says Bradley County Jail inmate Ralph Nelms was placed on suicide watch at the time of his death, which required periodic cell checks.
The agency says former officers Gabriel Nathaniel Black, Ronald Joshua Reddish and Timothy Jason Boyd didn’t make the checks as reported, and jail logs were faked to say that they did.
The Bradley County Grand Jury returned indictments Wednesday for official misconduct. Black also is charged with tampering with evidence and governmental records.
The three men turned themselves in Friday and are in Bradley County Jail on a $15,000 bond.
Nelms, 41, was found hanging in his cell in September.
