NASHVILLE, Tennessee — A former Tennessee jail guard convicted of torturing a teen who had been tied to a chair with a stun gun has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Mark Bryant, 42, had been convicted in federal court in January of repeatedly tasing an 18-year-old Jordan Norris, who was restrained and surrounded by officers inside the Cheatham County jail for nearly a minute back in 2016.
Bryant returned two hours later and tased Norris again, this time while the detainee was handcuffed, shackled, and compliant, prosecutors said.
As a result, Norris suffered burns that an officer on the scene described as making his skin look like “raw hamburger meat.” As the senior officer at the scene, Bryant then directed his colleagues not to submit reports about the abuse.
“The extraordinary abuse of power displayed by Bryant was both disturbing and disappointing to the many fine men and women in law enforcement who strive every day to carry out their duties with honor and professionalism,” said U.S. Attorney Donald Cochran.
Bryant’s first federal trial ended with a hung jury.But in January, a jury convicted Bryant of two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law. The jury acquitted Bryant of two counts of obstruction of justice and one count of lying to the FBI.
Family members said Norris had never been in jail before the night he was abused. They said Norris had frequent nightmares and severe chest pain and that he fell into deep and prolonged depression after the tasings.
Two years after the incident, and after Cheatham County settled a civil lawsuit about the tasing, Norris was found dead in his home. Family members say it was a drug overdose.
