The Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested a member of the jail staff the afternoon of Thursday, Feb. 26. The jail officer is alleged to have used inappropriate force on an inmate while the inmate was handcuffed. The incident occurred the evening of Feb. 24.

According to Chief Deputy Mike Haley, the inmate was handcuffed and in the presence of four officers when one of the officers struck the inmate several times in the head and face with his hand. The Sheriff’s Office immediately launched an internal investigation and consulted the District Attorney’s Office on the matter.

The officer, Steve Price, 42, a resident of Military Road in Angie, was charged with second-degree battery, a felony. He was booked into the Washington Parish Jail and later released on $10,000 bond, which was set by the court magistrate. His employment with the Sheriff’s Office has been terminated.

Sheriff Randy Seal commented, “I have said all along that we will enforce the law, regardless of who the offender might be. In this case, the offender was a member of our staff, but we have to treat our staff the same as we would any other person. We take no joy in arresting Mr. Price, but we must do our job as the law requires.”