CINCINNATI – A former Hamilton County sheriff’s deputy has been arrested on charges he used excessive force on an inmate at the jail. Jason Mize was indicted on a charge of depravation of rights under color of law.

Jason Mize was arrested early Thursday and on Thursday night, he is going home.

A federal judge released him on his own recognizance after being charged with using excessive force against an inmate, an incident that was caught on video.

Mize is accused of shoving 61-year-old Mark Myers, who was in medical intake, into a holding cell. Myers head hit a concrete wall. He suffered lacerations to his head and a leg fracture. The incident was recorded by a jail surveillance camera.

Prosecutors say this was not the only time Mize got physical with inmates.

The federal charge of excessive use of force stems from an August 2016 incident at the Hamilton County Justice Center. Prosecutors say it shows Mize pushing a 61-year-old inmate towards a holding cell and then shoving him headfirst into a wall.

The indictment says the inmate suffered head lacerations and a broken hip.

Myers sued over the incident. Former jailer Charmaine McGuffey has sued Sheriff Jim Neil and Hamilton County because she says she was fired because she complained about the use of excessive force. She cited Myers’ case as an example. She says she wanted Mize disciplined but he was not.

During a detention hearing Thursday afternoon, federal prosecutors told a judge there were other incidents where Mize used excessive force against inmates.

Each time, Mize was disciplined.

Mize’s attorney told the judge that prosecutors cited only three or four such incidents over his client’s 10-year career working at the justice center. He told the judge it’s a hard job that deals with hard people.

Mize resigned last year.

The judge did not see Mize as a threat to the public and ordered him to meet several conditions including drug and alcohol testing and to have a mental health evaluation.

The FBI arrested Mize on Thursday. If convicted, he faces up to ten years in prison.

Source: http://local12.com/news/local/former-hamilton-co-deputy-accused-of-using-excessive-force-indicted-on-a-federal-charge