FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CRT

FRIDAY, MAY 12, 2006 (202) 514-2007

WWW.USDOJ.GOV TDD (202) 514-1888

Former Wilson County, Tennessee

Corrections Officer Sentenced for Civil
Rights-Related Charge
WASHINGTON—Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Wan J.
Kim, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Jim Vines, and Special
Agent in Charge of the Memphis Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
My Harrison, today announced that former Wilson County, Tenn. corrections officer
Tommy Shane Conatser was sentenced on charges relating to violations of the civil
rights of inmates at the Wilson County Jail in Lebanon, Tenn. Conatser was
sentenced to 70 months imprisonment, and two years supervised release.

“The Justice Department is committed to vigorously prosecuting any law

enforcement officer who abuses a position of trust to mistreat those in custody,” said
Assistant Attorney General Kim. “Such unlawful behavior undermines the tireless
efforts of the vast majority of law enforcement officers throughout our nation who
do a tough job with professionalism and courage.”

Conatser was a corrections officer on the night shift of the Wilson County jail from
2000 to mid-2002. He was convicted at trial of conspiring with fellow former officer
Patrick Marlowe and other defendants to violate the rights of inmates at the jail
under 18 U.S.C. § 241. Conatser was present while Marlowe and other officers
assaulted inmates causing serious injuries, including the breaking of one inmate's
jaw and the breaking of another inmate's cheek bones. Conatser then participated in
covering up these assaults through filing false incident reports.

In addition to Conatser and Marlowe, six other former Wilson County corrections
officers have pleaded guilty to felony charges relating to violations of the civil
rights of inmates at the Wilson County Jail. Three of these eight defendants have
been sentenced to date. Christopher McCathern was sentenced to a 41-month term
of imprisonment and two years of supervised release. Travis Bradley was sentenced
to two-years probation. Robert Brian Ferrell also was sentenced to a one-year term
of imprisonment and two years of supervised release. The remaining defendants are
scheduled to be sentenced as follows: William Westmoreland, John McKinney, and
Gary Hale on June 16, 2006; and Marlowe on July 6, 2006.
In announcing the sentencing, Assistant Attorney General Kim commended the U.S.
Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, the Criminal Section of the
Civil Rights Division, the FBI, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and the
District Attorney General’s Office for the Fifteenth Judicial District, for their
involvement in this investigation and prosecution of alleged civil rights violations at
the Wilson County Jail.

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