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A correctional officer at the federal prison in Sumter County has been indicted on charges related to the deadly beating of an inmate, the U.S. Justice Department said. A federal grand jury in Orlando charged Erin Sharma with conspiring to violate the civil rights of inmate Richard Delano and arranging for another inmate to assault him, according to the indictment. The charges -- carrying a sentence of up to life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine -- come more than three years after Delano died from injuries in a beating from another inmate, according to the indictment. "It was a complicated investigation that took time," First Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolyn Adams, who will prosecute the case, said Friday. Adams did not elaborate on the probe conducted by the FBI and the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General. The indictment alleges that Sharma and an unnamed co-conspirator agreed to move Delano into another inmate's cell at the Federal Correctional Complex in Coleman. The document says Sharma and the conspirator knew that John McCullah, an inmate serving a life sentence, was likely to assault Delano, and that they moved Delano into McCullah's cell in retaliation for a scuffle between Delano and Sharma. Sharma encouraged McCullah to assault Delano, according to the indictment. Delano died around March 17, 2005, about two weeks after McCullah's beating sent him into a coma, the document says. This week's indictment came two months after federal prosecutors and prison officials announced charges against nine employees at Coleman, the country's largest federal prison. Most were accused of taking bribes of up to $20,000 for smuggling drugs, cigars, cell phones, a knife and other forbidden items into the correctional complex since 2005. An inmate and a correctional officer's girlfriend also were charged in the case. There are about 7,500 inmates and 1,266 workers at Coleman's five low- to high-security facilities, including a minimum-security satellite camp for female inmates. Among its inmates is media tycoon and former British House of Lords member Conrad Black, convicted of siphoning $6.1 million from Hollinger Inc., his international newspaper empire. He began serving a 6 1/2 -year stint at Coleman's low-security facility March 3. Jim Leusner of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Adrian G. Uribarri can be reached at auribarri@orlandosentinel.com or 352-742-5926. |
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