Murder of Craig Prescott in County Jail Shows Rampant Brutality of Sheriff's Department

In 2009, Craig Prescott was tasered and shot with pepper balls by guards in the Downtown Stanislaus County. Prescott was in fact a former guard of the institution, until he came under investigation after being charged with providing tobacco to an inmate. Later, Prescott's wife had Prescott incarcerated after he suffered a nervous breakdown. After two days of being in the jail, Prescott was still in mental distress; and that's when guards came in and began to taser him.

Prescott in one of six people in the last year to die within the Stanislaus County Jail. He is among one of half of those six's families who are launching lawsuits against the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department in wrongful death suits.

This week, Prescott's family released a video from inside Prescott's cell. It was shot by the guards after Prescott was tasered. Sheriff's claim that there was no video taken showing Prescott being tasered and shot with pepper balls...yeah right! Of course this is bullshit, the police are simply deciding what evidence they are going to release. After Prescott was attacked, he was moved into another cell. When his condition did not change, he was moved again to a hospital, where he died two days later.

Prescott's family claims that Craig in fact was killed not by the tasers, but instead by police suffocating him to death while in his cell. According to the cops lawyers, Prescott died from a heart condition, while an autopsy conducted by Prescott's family showed that he was in fact suffocated to death. Either way, the Stanislaus County DA's Office was quick to find the Sheriff's Department completely without fault.  So much for blind justice. 

A civil suit is set for 2012 in Fresno. The family of Sammy Galvan squared off against the Modesto Police in Court here several years ago, after police brutally shot and killed their son in 2004, only to lose in court thanks to police lies and corruption.

Prescott's case helps to expose the rampant brutality and murder that continues to this day within the walls of the jail. We have to break through the silence enforced by the violence of the state and stop these atrocities from happening again. Revolt on the inside - revolt on the outside!

View the video released by Prescott's family below. Here they claim (after Craig was shot with tasers) he is actually dying and being suffocated by the guards) then, only to be moved to another cell.