A Clark County inmate has filed a citizen’s complaint against a corrections deputy alleging assault. If the complaint is sustained, it could lead to criminal prosecution of the deputy, even though the Vancouver City Attorney’s Office has already declined to prosecute the case.
The complaint was filed Wednesday against James D. Winters — a 26-year veteran of the sheriff’s office — in Clark County District Court. Defense attorney Angus Lee filed the complaint on behalf of jail inmate Cory Cunningham, who’s been in custody since July 18, 2016.
Cunningham has been housed at the Clark County Jail Work Center since September 2016 and is scheduled to be released next month, court records show.
He alleges that Winters kicked, punched, slapped and grabbed him on four different occasions between February and June 2017 at the work center.
“I did nothing to threaten him or in any way cause him to need to touch or assault me. I was both harmed, hurt and offended by what he did to me,” Cunningham states in the complaint.
In an interview with investigators, Winters characterized his conduct as horseplay.
Charges of fourth-degree assault were referred to the city attorney’s office Aug. 11 as a result of a criminal investigation, but prosecutors later that month declined to pursue them, City Prosecutor Kevin McClure said Friday.
“Citizen’s complaints are unusual, and I can’t recall seeing any over the course of my 20 years of prosecution,” McClure said in a phone interview. He added that the city attorney’s office is still looking into what its role is in the complaint and how to respond.
Winters was placed on administrative leave June 29 after an internal investigation initiated earlier that month turned into a criminal investigation.
Jail Chief Ric Bishop previously told The Columbian that Cunningham, whose name was not released at the time, did not require medical attention as a result of the alleged altercations.
The Vancouver Police Department’s Major Crimes Unit began investigating Winters around July 5 and forwarded the completed investigative materials to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for review of charges Aug. 7. The case was subsequently sent to the city attorney’s office, which had jurisdiction.
Winters returned to work at some point after prosecutors declined to file charges, but it’s unclear if he’s been placed back on administrative leave in light of the citizen’s complaint. Efforts to reach a spokesperson with the sheriff’s office Friday were unsuccessful.
According to the petition for the citizen’s complaint, anyone wishing to pursue criminal action for a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor can appear before a judge. The judge may consider the allegations on the basis of a sworn affidavit of probable cause. If the judge authorizes the criminal filing, the charges are then sent to the prosecution.
Cunningham’s complaint includes a probable cause affidavit authored by Vancouver police Sgt. Jeff Kipp. Kipp prepared the affidavit as part of the initial investigation.
Kicks, slaps and punches
On June 13, Cunningham complained to a sheriff’s sergeant about Winters’ treatment of him. He said that on Feb. 11, 2017, Winters kicked him in the hip while he was sitting on the floor in a dorm, causing pain and swelling. Three other inmates witnessed the kick, and one submitted a written grievance afterward, the affidavit states.
The sheriff’s sergeant subsequently told investigators with the Vancouver Police Department that “Cunningham did not want to ‘…make a big deal about it’ or get Deputy Winters into any trouble but that he wanted the behavior to stop,” court records show.
Cunningham later said he down-played the severity of the kick because he was afraid he would be sent back to the main jail, according to the court document.
In mid-April, Cunningham was sitting at a table in the day room, he said, when Winters slapped him on the back. Cunningham said the slap knocked the wind out of him. Winters later apologized. The incident was mentioned by another inmate in an unrelated grievance filed April 18 against Winters, the affidavit said.
Then, on May 19, Cunningham was taking out the garbage when Winters pushed him out the door into a lobby area and punched him in the chest. Another deputy who witnessed part of the incident said she later talked to Cunningham, and he didn’t want to report it, court records state.
In the last altercation, Cunningham said he was playing cards in a dorm with other inmates June 10 when Winters approached them, put his hands around Cunningham’s throat and said, “Do you want me to choke him out?” according to the court document.
Some inmates who witnessed each incident said Winters was playing around.
During an interview with investigators, he admitted to all of the conduct and said he wasn’t trying to hurt Cunningham. He said he thought he had a good relationship with the inmates, and was just “screwing around.” He added that he had told the inmates to tell him if they felt he was out of line, the affidavit states.
On Friday, Lee declined to comment on “any lack of action to date by any governmental agency.”
“The probable cause affidavit speaks for itself, and this matter is being brought to the attention of the court,” he said in a phone interview.
Winters has been summoned to appear Feb. 26 in District Court for arraignment, court records show.
