AMITE - A Hammond corrections officer was charged with malfeasance in office after she battered and pepper-sprayed an inmate in 2021. 

In February 2021, 52-year-old Vera Chester was arrested and charged with simple battery, aggravated battery, and injuring public records after she gave false statements regarding the incident. 

According to the Twenty-First Judicial District, an internal affairs investigation was launched after it was reported that Chester had battered an inmate while patting them down, slamming their head into the wall. When the inmate refused to move into another room, Chester and another corrections officer brought them into a bathroom and pepper-sprayed them. 

The two officers then brought the inmate back out of the bathroom, put them on a bench, and Chester hit them multiple times in the head with their bag.

The victim reported vision problems and went to the hospital with a swollen skull. 

Chester was found guilty of malfeasance in office and evidence tampering on July 27. There was no word on whether the other correctional officer reportedly involved in the incident was found guilty as well.