BECKLEY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Charges have been filed against two former Corrections Officers with Southern Regional Jail in relation to a federal investigation into the death of former inmate Quantez Burks.
Burks, who was 37 years old at the time of his February 28, 2022, arrest for Wanton Endangerment and Obstruction. Less than 24 hours after his arrest and transfer into the custody of Southern Regional Jail, Burks was pronounced dead, reportedly of “natural causes.”
The family of Burks insists that his passing was the result of blunt force trauma incurred during an attack, a suspicion which some might argue falls in line with details revealed through recently filed federal court documents.
Documentation filed on Tuesday by the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia implicates Steven Wimmer and Andrew Fleshman, both former officers with the West Virginia Department of Corrections, engaged in the conspiratorial attack of inmate “Q.B.” who, “was restrained, handcuffed,” and “posed no threat to anyone.”
It has additionally been disclosed that the restrained inmate was escorted to several areas throughout the facility, including an interview room, where the defendants continued their attacks.
According to these documents, the actions by the officers in question violated the Constitutional rights of the pre-trail detainee by conspiring to “injure, oppress, threaten, and intimidate” the victim while operating in their respective official capacities as Corrections Officers with the state.
Burks mother, Kimberly, has been steadfast in seeking justice for her son, even raising the issue with Governor Jim Justice during a Town Hall event earlier this year.
“I hope that it doesn’t happen to another family because it is the worst feeling in the world to know that your child is beaten with no answers, no reason why,” said Burks of the purported treatment of her son while in the custody of Southern Regional Jail.
Burks’ passing during his incarceration is but one of many such incidents to have occurred in recent years, and litigation to address a number of these issues has been set into motion. The federal investigation of Burks’ death at SRJ remains ongoing and it is believed that additional suspects may be revealed as the investigation proceeds.
