2 MCSO detention officers questioned in assault on inmates

PHOENIX - Two Maricopa County detention officers have been questioned for the aggravated assault on two different inmates, authorities said.

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office said Monday that 31-year-old Kevin Gerster was caught on jail surveillance video walking up onto a table and stepping on the neck of an inmate who was bent over with his hands cuffed behind him. Gerster reportedly held that position for several seconds and later punched the inmate five times in the back and leg.

The incident apparently came to light when a number of officers reported seeing Gerster assault the inmate on November 11, according to MCSO.

Authorities said when detectives reviewed the assault, they recognized Gerster's name from another incident on June 5, 2010 when he allegedly punched an inmate in the jaw. That inmate later needed surgery to repair the damage.

In a third incident, Gerster is accused of using the jail's classified computer system to get the home address of an inmate and gave it to a friend whose ex-wife was dating the inmate.The friend allegedly located the former inmate and assaulted him and his ex-wife with a box cutter. That man, identified as Dennis McCarty, was arrested by Tempe police on September 19, 2010 and charged with four counts of aggravated assault, burglary and criminal damage.

MCSO says a second detention officer, 32-year-old Alan Keesee, was questioned in relation to the assault on the first inmate, but has not been arrested as charges are pending. The video allgedly showed Keesee slamming the inmate's head against the table. In an interview, Keesee reportedly told deputies that he was "trying to regain control of a mouthy inmate when by grabbing his head."

The arrests come just a week after another detention officer was arrested for stealing thousands of dollars from a jail safe.