Evidence of Civil Rights Violations at Miller County Detention Center, Texarkana, Arkansas

Above is the limited video footage provided by the prosecution displaying police brutality by Former Correctional Officer Christian Studdard and multiple Miller County Jail staff.

Demario Lashun Hankins was originally brought in the Miller County Jail on May 6th, 2022 by Arkansas State Trooper Dale Young for alleged minor traffic infraction charges, to which he was never charged with by Trooper Young in the District Court of Miller County. Neither were these charges apart of the Circuit Court.  Trooper Young allegedly brought Demario across state lines from Texas to Arkansas without allowing Demario the opportunity to see a Texas Magistrate. Trooper Young performed an illegal and extended pretextual stop absent probable cause a crime was committed.  While at the jail, Trooper Young released Demario to jail officials, which denied him the opportunity to post bail that night on May 6th, 2022. Instead, Demario was faced with further injustice, unlawful actions and excessive force by Former Correctional Guard Christian Studdard.  Studdard, instead of providing Demario accurate bond information and allowing him to subsequently bond out, ordered Demario directly to the fingerprinting room to be fingerprinted for the traffic infraction and Class C Misdemeanor (which, by law Studdard was not authorized to do according to Arkansas State Law 12-12-1006). The video above was provided to Demario’s defense attorney at the time which will not show how the initial altercation started (intentional suppression); even though there’s a camera inside the fingerprinting room and there are overhead cameras covering the entire booking area. Keep in mind, there is not a door attached to the fingerprinting room, so there are multiple cameras that could have captured how the initial altercation started. Deputy Pendergrass alleged Demario and Studdard “disappeared” from camera view in his felony report to intentionally shield Studdard’s misconduct and actions towards Demario (conspiracy). Further, so that Pendergrass’ felony report could fit the narrative that Demario was the initial aggressor and allegedly assaulted Studdard inside the fingerprinting room. The prosecutor used Studdard’s statement, the video above, and Pendergrass’ felony report only to prosecute Demario, knowing the evidence was tainted. Under extreme psychological duress and pressure of evidence being suppressed, the prosecutor offered Demario 4 year’s of probation, to which Demario accepted unknowing of critical evidence that was suppressed in his case such as Studdard’s disciplinary records, Pendergrass body-cam, and the surveillance footage inside the fingerprinting room of how the altercation started on May 6th, 2022. 

The video evidence above is of Demario being assaulted by Correctional Officer Studdard which contradicts Studdard’s statement (below) and Pendergrass felony report (below).

See below Former Correctional Officer Studdard’s false and misleading statement, which led to the malicious prosecution. Studdard’s statement contradicts the video footage above. Studdard has a history of using excessive force on inmates and falsifying documents which is likely why Studdard no longer works at Miller County Jail as of December 2023. Studdard has a pending civil rights case against him in Mack v. Studdard Case #: 4:24-cv-04002 to where he pushed Inmate Malcolm Caldwell Mack down 16 flights of stairs and nearly broke his leg. Prosecution tried to pursue aggravated battery felony charges against Malcolm, but those charges were dropped because the video footage was clear on the excessive force Studdard used. Malcolm is also a [black] male.  Also in Hayes v. Henderson Case #: 4:19-cv-04054 Studdard was being sued for excessive force. This explains why Sheriff David Wayne Easley suppressed Studdard’s full personal files from being lodged into Demario’s case as exculpatory evidence.

An excerpt from Studdard’s Misconduct Records showing Excessive Force, demoted and found guilty of said offense. This was two years prior to Demario being booked into Miller County Jail.

See below the felony report written by Deputy Joshua Pendergrass based on Correctional Officer Studdard’s false account.  Deputy Pendergrass alleges Demario and Studdard disappeared from camera view, when there are cameras installed in every angle of the booking room, to include inside of the fingerprinting room. This is the reason why the prosecution only provided Demario’s defense at the time limited video footage at an angle that does not display how the initial altercation started. Studdard’s actions were all premediated and unlawful. According to Arkansas State law 12-12-1006, Demario should have never been taken to the fingerprinting room in the first place. Demario did not qualify to be booked in/fingerprinted based on how he was charged by Trooper Young. 

Below are the traffic infraction charges Trooper Young arrested Demario for on May 6th, 2022, and brought him to Miller County Jail, which subjected him to other civil rights violations that led to Correctional Officer Studdard pepper spraying Demario in the face at close range inside the fingerprinting room for simply asking to speak with Studdard’s senior supervisor, the sheriff, et cetera regarding the fingerprint process for the traffic infractions. These alleged traffic infractions never warranted fingerprinting in the first place as shown in Arkansas’ own law that jail staff violated amongst other laws and res judicata in Arkansas Annotated Code 12-12-1006: Arkansas Code § 12-12-1006 (2024) – Fingerprinting, DNA sample collection, and photographing :: 2024 Arkansas Code :: U.S. Codes and Statutes :: U.S. Law :: Justia

See below, Trooper Young’s charges above were subsequently dismissed. The “Criminal” charge of obstruction characterized as a traffic offense. Demario was never charged with the traffic infractions and/or Class C Misdemeanor he was originally brought to jail on May 6th, 2022. 

See below Miller County Detention Center’s Booking Procedures that Correctional Officer Studdard violated by pepper spraying Demario in the face multiple times as punishment, which immediately after incapacitated Demario causing temporary blindless, migraines, anxiety, fear, difficulty breathing, et cetera. Studdard and Miller County Jail staff were in complete disregard to Demario’s health, safety and well-being, as none of this was taken into consideration during booking that night. Studdard did not take Demario’s picture, did not attempt to take Demario back to the holding cell as Studdard is alleging in his statement above, did not go over Demario’s medical history or any of that. Studdard ordered Demario directly to the fingerprinting room from the holding cell to collect fingerprints for traffic infraction charges, to which Demario should have never been fingerprinted in the first place. In spite of that, Pendergrass and the prosecution shielded this corruption by further pursuing criminal charges against Demario to cover up Studdard’s actions on May 6th, 2022.

Below is evidence of alleged fraud upon the court and civil conspiracy to obstruct justice in the Discovery to Defense provided by Prosecutor David Cotten. Extreme fabrication as it appears. No Judicial hearing or verified Judicial signature appears in the discovery below.  Abuse of process, due process violations, malicious prosecution, falsification of court records, alleged forged signature of an unidentified Judge, et cetera. Demario was not present or neither was an attorney or public defender appointed to Demario during the Record of First Judicial Appearance.  Demario was placed in solitary confinement for 18 days the next day following the incident with no outside medical referral, emergency room referral, et cetera despite complaining of internal pain and other injuries. Judge Thomas A. Potter, along with David Cotten ordered a bond of $150k on Demario, making it nearly impossible to bond out.