The South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy has suspended the law enforcement certifications for two former Kershaw County deputies who were fired over the beating of a handcuffed suspect on August 5th.
Then-Sgt. Oddie Tribble, Jr. is seen on security camera video using a baton to beat 38-year-old Charles Shelley on the legs more than two dozen times. One of Shelley's legs was broken and the other needed stitches. The video came from a security camera in the sally port of the Kershaw County Detention Center. Tribble was fired the next day.
Another deputy in the video does nothing to intervene or stop the beating. Kershaw County Sheriff Steve McCaskill fired Deputy James Simmons, Jr. on August 12th "for failing to act while a prisoner was being abused", according to the misconduct report sent to the Criminal Justice Academy.
CJA General Counsel Brandy Duncan says any time a law enforcement officer leaves his job, his certification automatically lapses.
"Therefore, the moment Mr. Tribble and Mr. Simmons no longer worked for a law enforcement agency they were no longer certified law enforcement officers. This is true for all separations from law enforcement employment in South Carolina, whether that separation is simply an officer quitting to work at another law enforcement agency or a termination," she says.
She says if they were to find another law enforcement employer, the new employer would have to send a request that their certification be re-issued. The academy would have to look at the allegations against them to determine whether they've committed misconduct, which includes, "physical or psychological abuses of members of the public and/or prisoners."
The State Law Enforcement Division is investigating the incident, as is the FBI, to determine whether Tribble violated Shelley's civil rights.
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