2 plead guilty to charges stemming from inmate assault

WEST LIBERTY, Ky. (AP) — Authorities say two former correctional officers at an eastern Kentucky prison have pleaded guilty to charges related to the assault of a restrained inmate. The Justice Department said in a statement Monday that 36-year-old James D. Benish and 54-year-old Randy L. Nickell admitted they witnessed fellow officers assault a nonviolent inmate who was restrained in a prison shower cell. The department says Benish pleaded guilty to one count of deprivation of an inmate’s civil rights and Nickell pleaded guilty to three counts of obstruction of justice. Authorities say Benish admitted that he failed to intervene during the assault while Nickell admitted that he falsified records and lied to investigators.