NJ Correctional Officer Admits To Unprovoked Assault Of Juvenile

Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has garnered an admission from a New Jersey Correctional Officer.

Lieutenant Edward Day admits to assaulting a 16-year-old juvenile “without cause or justification.”

The assault took place at the New Jersey Juvenile Justice facility, a medium-security detention facility located in Bordentown, New Jersey, on Oct. 25, 2020.

The circumstances surrounding the assault are disturbing and unprovoked.

The juvenile, a boy, was handcuffed, with his hands behind his back. During a transfer, Day "grabbed the victim’s ankle from behind, pulled his leg back, and pushed him face-forward onto the ground," said Platkin.

Day “grabbed hold of the juvenile’s handcuffed wrists and twisted and broke one of them," said Platkin.

Day pled guilty to aggravated assault in New Jersey Superior Court in Trenton, New Jersey on Wednesday, February 23, 2022.

His guilty plea deal will allow him to serve his prison sentence in the Burlington County Detention Center, located in Mount Holly, New Jersey.

You can serve up to 364 days in county jail.

Platkin confirmed that New Jersey state Deputy Attorney General Brian Uzdavinis secured the plea deal.

As a condition of this plea deal, Day will not be allowed to hold public employment, or, run for elective public office ever again in the state of New Jersey.

Day is 52 years old and was very close to retiring at the time of this incident.

Platkin concluded that “this guilty plea reflects our resolve to hold law enforcement officers accountable if they use unjustified and excessive force against civilians.”

“No one is above the law, and all people are entitled to the law’s protections, including those in state custody,” said Platkin.

Day will be sentenced in New Jersey Superior Court, before The Honorable Judge Philip Haines on April 13, 2022.

SOURCE: Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin