Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak shared a short video Thursday (April 8) showing what he referred to as an inmate’s “unprovoked attack” on a corrections officer at the Jail in Hillsboro.
The 16 seconds of surveillance footage posted on Marshak’s Twitter feed shows an inmate cross a dorm room between rows of metal bunk beds and strike a corrections officer in the head. A physical altercation followed, and the officer and inmate can be seen rolling on the ground before the video ends.
Sheriff’s Office spokesman Grant Bissell said pepper spray was used to subdue the inmate, who allegedly was trying to bite the corrections officer’s hands, arms and legs.
Bissell said the officer and inmate were both taken to a hospital for treatment. He said the officer returned to work shortly after the incident, and the inmate was treated for a cut above one of his eyes and returned to the Jail.
Bissell said the inmate seen in the video is Kenneth O. Underwood, 19, of Festus.
Underwood is being held in the Jail after being charged with five felonies and three misdemeanors for allegedly beating a mother and daughter at a Festus apartment March 2, 2020. He also was charged for allegedly punching a police officer who was trying to arrest him.
Festus Police got a call shortly before 2 a.m. about the alleged assault the apartment in the 200 block of Timberwyck, Chief Tim Lewis said at the time.
When officers arrived at the apartment, they found the mother bleeding heavily from her head. One officer administered first aid while other officers searched the area for Underwood, the probable-cause statement in the case said.
The daughter reportedly told police she went to close her bedroom window and saw Underwood outside the window, and he asked if he could stay at the apartment that night. The daughter said she told him no, but he allegedly stated, “he was coming in anyways.” Then, Underwood allegedly grabbed her by the hair and choked her, the report said.
The mother told police she found Underwood allegedly pulling her daughter by the hair as he “was attempting to pull (the daughter) out the window.” The mother also said Underwood was choking her daughter, according to the report.
Underwood also allegedly punched the mother on the left side of her face while she was trying to help her daughter. The mother told police she left the room to get a knife, but when she returned, Underwood was gone, the report said.
Lewis said the victims were 59 and 39 years old and knew Underwood.
A short time later, Underwood allegedly assaulted a patrol officer who found him and was trying to arrest him, another probable-cause statement said.
“He struck me in my right eye with his right elbow, then proceeded to flee on foot,” the officer said in the report. “I proceeded after Mr. Underwood, catching him in the middle of the street, where I was able to pull him to the ground and hold him there until assisting Festus officers arrived.”
The officer said his right knee was injured during the struggle, and one of the assisting officers sustained an injury to his left knee, the report said.
Once the officers had Underwood restrained, they allegedly found him with drugs.
Bissell said Marshak released the video of the alleged assault against the correction officer in the Jail because an internal investigation into the incident was closed Thursday.
Marshak shared three tweets about the incident.
“One of our corrections officers has recovered from an unprovoked assault by an accused violent inmate,” he said. “Just because ‘pre-trial detainees’ haven't been convicted doesn't mean they are all ‘innocent.’ Detainees deserve all the protections of the Constitution and humane treatment.
“But, let’s not pretend that because they haven't been convicted for their current charge they are all saints either. Prior to detention, there was probable cause they committed a crime and a prosecutor that wants to accept ‘winner’ cases reviewed the case before filing.
“A judge may order a defendant’s pretrial detention only if it determines – by clear and convincing evidence – that no combination of non-monetary and monetary conditions will ensure (the) safety of the community or any person.”
Court documents list the charges against Underwood as first-degree assault, a class A felony; first-degree domestic assault and first-degree burglary, both B felonies; third-degree assault of a special victim, a class D felony; resisting or interfering with an arrest, a class E felony; second-degree property damage, a class B misdemeanor; and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of marijuana or synthetic cannabinoid of 10 grams or less, both class D misdemeanors.