Press Release · Justice News
Former Correctional Officer Sentenced on Federal Civil Rights Charges in Connection with Conspiracy to Violate Inmates’ Rights at West Virginia Jail
Distributed by Times Beats · Originally issued via U.S. Department of Justice
MENU News
Archived Press Releases
Press Release Former Correctional Officer Sentenced on Federal Civil Rights Charges in Connection with Conspiracy to Violate Inmates’ Rights at West Virginia Jail Friday, October 30, 2026 Share
For Immediate Release
Office of Public Affairs
A former correctional officer from the Southern Regional Jail in Beaver, West Virginia, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy in which he and other correctional officers used unreasonable and unjustified force against inmates, including pretrial detainees, as a form of punishment and retaliation. Michael Pack, 40, pleaded guilty on March 30 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn to one count of violating 18 U.S.C. § 371.
“Michael Pack conspired with other correctional officers to illegally assault and punish inmates in his custody,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “While we recognize that the great majority of law enforcement officers discharge their duties with integrity, this defendant abused his authority and has received an appropriate measure of accountability.”
According to court records, Pack admitted that he and his co-conspirators would strike, assault, and harm inmates they believed or perceived to have engaged in misconduct. As part of this conspiracy, Pack and his co-conspirators would bring inmates to known “blind spots” – areas of the jail that were not captured on surveillance cameras – so that they could use unreasonable and unjustified force against the inmates without being recorded and thus avoid being held accountable for their actions.
Specifically, Pack admitted that he and his co-conspirators repeatedly struck a pretrial detainee, and sprayed him with OC spray to punish him for kicking his cell door. Pack admitted that on another occasion he and his co-conspirators brought another pretrial detainee to an interview room not captured on surveillance cameras. While handcuffed and not a threat, Pack’s co-conspirators struck and assaulted the second detainee using unreasonable and unjustified force against the detainee Pack did not intervene during the assault despite having an opportunity to do so.
Pack further admitted that, as part of the conspiracy, he and his co-conspirators would prepare false reports denying their unreasonable uses of force against inmates and failing to document injuries that inmates sustained during use of force incidents, so that the conspirators would not be investigated or held accountable for their actions.
Specifically, Pack admitted that he was present when his co-conspirators used force against a pretrial detainee in a blind spot interview room. Pack wrote a false report omitting that he and his co-conspirators brought the detainee to the blind spot interview room. Pack also falsely reported that the detainee did not sustain injuries from the incident, despite being present after the assault when the detainee was escorted from the interview room while handcuffed and bleeding from the head.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Moore Capito for the Southern District of West Virginia made the announcement.
The FBI Pittsburgh Field Office, Charleston Resident Agency, investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Tenette Smith, former Deputy Chief Christine M. Siscaretti, and former Trial Attorney Sam Kuhn of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case in partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.
Updated October 30, 2026 Topic Civil Rights Components Civil Rights Division Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) USAO - West Virginia, Southern Press Release Number: 26-1294Related Content
Press ReleaseMan Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crimes in Deadly Attack on Boulder, Colorado, GatheringMohamed Sabry Soliman, 46, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, pleaded guilty in federal court today to 12 hate crimes charges for using Molotov cocktails to attack members of the group Run...
October 29, 2026 Press ReleaseJustice Department Sues to Stop Secret Gender Transitions at Anne Arundel County Public SchoolsThe Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division announced today its lawsuit to stop Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) from secretly “gender transitioning” children without their parents’ knowledge or consent and...
October 27, 2026
Press ReleaseUtah Man Charged with Attempted Hate Crime, and other Crimes After Allegedly Making Online Threats to “blow up” a Synagogue A federal grand jury in Salt Lake City returned an indictment charging a Utah man with multiple federal crimes including possession of an unregistered destructive device, threat to kill and...
October 22, 2026