FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          CR
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 1995                           (202) 616-2765
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888

                                 

           WEST VIRGINIA POLICE OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY
                    TO USING EXCESSIVE FORCE

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A Logan, West Virginia police officer
who twice asked a handcuffed prisoner where he wanted to be hit
before beating him, pled guilty today to violating federal civil
rights laws, the Justice Department announced.
     Police officer Dwayne A. Evans entered a guilty plea in U.S.
District Court in Charleston, West Virginia after beating
Jonathan Wriston, 22, of Montgomery, three separate times on
April 24, 1993.  Wriston was stopped by Evans for drunken driving
and offered no verbal or physical resistance during his arrest.  
     According to papers filed in the court, Evans first
assaulted Wriston in the Logan County Jail parking garage because
he believed that Wriston had spit in his patrol car.  Evans
placed the detainee, who was still in handcuffs, face first
against a wall and proceeded to strike him in the ribs.  Later,
the officer kicked Wriston in the head as he was sitting on the
floor of the police booking area, still in handcuffs.
     Evans again assaulted the detainee after they entered the
jail elevator.  He placed the young man in the corner, face first
and still handcuffed, and twice asked "where do you want it, in
the back of the head or the kidneys?"  He then proceeded to punch 
Wriston many times about his body.  
     Wriston went to the hospital the following day but did not
sustain permanent injuries. 
     "Police officers perform an honorable and significant
service to our nation's communities and we trust them to protect
us,"  said Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Deval L.
Patrick.  "However, when an officer crosses the line and uses his
or her authority to bully citizens, a badge will not immunize a
person from prosecution." 
     Evans pled guilty to one count of using excessive force
during an arrest.  As a result of his guilty plea, the defendant
faces up to 10 years imprisonment, restitution and fines of up to
$250,000.  
     "When this kind of misconduct goes unchecked, it makes it
tougher for the many good officers out there to do their jobs
effectively," said Rebecca Betts, United States Attorney in
Charleston.  "This prosecution demonstrates that this office and
the law enforcement community will take strong action to stop
such misconduct and protect the rights of the people." 
     The case was investigated by the FBI, the Civil Rights
Division of the Department of Justice, and the U.S. Attorney's
office in the Southern District of West Virginia.
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