Two former jail employees and their supervisor face misdemeanour cruelty charges after investigators found they forced inmates to stand handcuffed for hours and listen to the children’s song Baby Shark on repeat.
At least four inmates were secured to a wall with their hands cuffed behind them while the song played on a loop at a loud volume for hours, The Oklahoman reported.
The separate incidents occurred in November and December, according to court records.
The charges were filed on Monday against former Oklahoma County jail employees Gregory Cornell Butler Jr and Christian Charles Miles, both 21, and their supervisor, Christopher Raymond Hendershott, 50.
“It was unfortunate that I could not find a felony statute to fit this fact scenario,” Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said.
“I would have preferred filing a felony on this behaviour.”
Butler and Miles are accused of imposing the discipline and Hendershott is accused of knowing about it but not stopping it, the newspaper reported.
Miles confirmed he and Butler worked together to “teach (the inmates) a lesson because they felt that disciplinary action within the Detention Center was not working in correcting behaviour of the inmates,” an investigator wrote in court affidavits, USA Today reports.
“Butler also confirmed that he used the booth as a means of punishment,” the investigator said.
“The playing of the music was said to be a joke between Miles and Butler.”
The investigator added the music put “undue emotional stress” on the inmates “who were most likely already suffering from physical stressors”.
Sheriff PD Taylor said on Monday that Butler and Miles resigned during an internal investigation and that Hendershott retired.
“We don’t tolerate it,” Taylor said of the mistreatment.
“We always did an excellent job policing ourselves.”
The Baby Shark song gained huge popularity two years ago after the company Pinkfong released its first video online.
The video has since been viewed more than 6.5 billion times.
Source: 7news
