Sylvester Bruce, Civil Rights Violations, New Mexico 2010

A former corrections officer has been found guilty of violating an inmate’s civil rights in New Mexico.

Sylvester Bruce, 44, a former corrections officer with the Navajo Nation’s Shiprock Detention Center in Shiprock, N.M., pleaded guilty to one count of violating the civil rights of the victim when he touched her breasts against her will, and one count of making material false statements to the FBI when he denied taking pictures of inmates inside the cells of the SDC.

According to court documents, Bruce repeatedly placed his hands under the victim’s shirt and bra, and grabbed her breasts, knowing that she did not consent to his actions. Bruce did so in areas of the jail that did not have surveillance cameras.

The victim was incarcerated at the SDC during the summer and fall of 2010.

The Justice Department will vigorously prosecute these crimes and work to vindicate the rights of the courageous victims who report them, said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.

Bruce will be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 12 months and a day. He will also not be able to serve in a law enforcement capacity again and will submit to federal and state sex offender registration requirements.

This case was investigated by the Farmington Resident Agency of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI and the Shiprock Division of the Navajo Nation Department of Public Safety, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Baker for the District of New Mexico and Fara Gold of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

The FBI, as the lead agency for enforcing federal civil rights laws, will continue to vigorously investigate and bring to justice corrections officers who betray the great trust placed in them when they abuse the individuals in their custody, said Carol K.O. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI.

Bruce’s actions undermined the very foundation of our judicial system, said Kenneth J. Gonzales, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico.

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