News - Harrison County jail trial

Monday, Aug. 13, 2007

Feds expect to rest Monday

Trial could end within the week

HATTIESBURG -- The conspiracy trial of two former Harrison County jailers so far has included startling testimony of officers' taunts and torture of inmates, long-term cover-ups and videotapes of an inmate being beaten to death.

The federal government, with mounds of evidence amassed in an 18-month investigation, laid the foundation for its case in the first week of trial, which recessed Friday in Hattiesburg. Prosecutors expect to rest their case after testimony Monday. Defense attorneys will attempt to convince jurors their clients are not guilty of crimes that could put both defendants behind bars for life. The trial could end this week.

Current and former jailers and law enforcement officers last week testified for the prosecution of Ryan Michael Teel, 30, and James Ricky "Rick" Gaston, 52. Teel was the officer in charge of the booking room on Feb. 4, 2006, the night inmate Jessie Lee Williams Jr. was beaten to death. Gaston was the captain over booking and inmate records.

According to prosecutors and witnesses, Teel helped set the tone for making inmate abuse a sport at the jail. Gaston, they said, ran the booking division with its own set of rules and was known to say that booking was "kicking ass and not taking names."

Teel and Gaston are accused of conspiracy and two counts each involving specific inmate assaults, one including the same inmate. Teel's charges include the assault leading to Williams' death and falsifying his report.

Regina Rhodes, the first of eight former jailers to break a code of silence with a confession, gave frank, damaging testimony Friday against Teel, Gaston and others. She admitted taunting and punching Williams and said she and Teel swapped threats and curse words with Williams before Teel initiated the attack. She gave a detailed narration of videotapes from different cameras around the booking area.

According to Rhodes, co-conspirators bragged about assaulting inmates and Gaston reminded them to avoid being caught on camera if they "had to do something." It wasn't uncommon, she said, for officers to pepper-spray door handles and toilet seats for the fun of watching inmates experience the painful burning sensation.

Rhodes and others who testified said officers had names for each day of the week: Thump A Thug Thursday. Friday Night Fights. Slap A Ho Saturday.

Rhodes recalled taunting Williams by telling him, "If you're feeling froggy, jump."

"I told him he should listen to that white boy (Teel) or he's going to hit him."

According to testimony, handcuffs were removed from Williams and he was complying with an order to remove his shoes when Teel gave him a forceful kick. A struggle ensued, and Williams was again cuffed with hands behind his back. The tapes recorded an image without sound every two or three seconds. They show an officer, identified in court as Teel, launching a series of assaults with closed fists, feet and a variety of devices.