PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — A former correctional officer in Florida has been sentenced to federal prison for attacking an inmate and then planting evidence on him in an attempt to claim self-defense.
The News Herald reports that court records show 58-year-old Willie L. Walker of Lynn Haven was sentenced Thursday to 21 months in federal prison followed by a year of supervised release. Walker was convicted in September of depriving Gulf Correctional Institute inmate William Hernandez of his constitutional rights to not endure cruel and unusual punishment while incarcerated in March 2015.
District Judge Robert Hinkle also ordered Walker to forfeit his retirement benefits from his time as an officer.
Court records said Walker sprayed Hernandez with pepper spray, punched and kicked him, and then planted a homemade weapon on him and falsified reports in attempt to claim self-defense.
___
