By Elizabeth DePompei
The Evening News and the Tribune
JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. — A Jeffersonville man convicted of punching a corrections officer and breaking his jaw in three places has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.
A jury found 30-year-old Raymond J. Taylor II, guilty of a level 3 felony count of aggravated battery as a habitual offender on Sept. 9. The verdict came months after Taylor was caught on video punching a Clark County jail corrections officer in the face, causing what Chief Deputy Prosecutor Tim Gray described as a permanent injury.
According to court records, Taylor was an inmate in the jail during the incident. Two officers entered the pod and asked Taylor to stop sitting on one of the tables in the common area, but Taylor refused. Sitting on top of tables is against jail rules.
One officer is holding handcuffs as he stands near Taylor, according to description of the video in the probable cause affidavit. Taylor then “lunges” at the officer and strikes him in the mouth. Taylor reportedly tried to attack the officer a second time, but a second officer standing nearby was able to stop him. More officers eventually enter the pod to restrain Taylor.
The injured officer was taken to Clark Memorial Hospital and later, to University of Louisville Hospital for surgery. He had three broken bones in his jaw and his jaw was wired shut for at least two weeks after. Gray said the officer still has a plate and six screws in his jaw.
On Monday, Taylor was sentenced to 30 years with the Indiana Department of Corrections. A level 3 felony has a sentencing range between three and 16 years, and Taylor received the maximum plus another 14 years for being convicted as a habitual offender. Online court records show Taylor has been convicted of at least five felonies and four misdemeanors. Gray added that Taylor has repeatedly violated his terms of probation in previous cases.
“So he’s been given those chances, not one or two or three times, but six, seven or eight times to change or reform, and he hasn’t,” Gray said. “So you get to the point where your chance for probation and those things are over and then it’s an executed sentence.”
With lower-level battery offenses, a defendant can face tougher charges if the victim is a law enforcement official. But when it comes to aggravated battery with such serious injuries, it doesn’t matter who the victim is, Gray said.
Taylor’s sister, Cassandra Taylor of Fort Wayne, said a 30-year sentence is extreme. She said her brother, who has a 10-year-old son and an infant daughter, plans to appeal the case. Gray said Taylor and his attorney, Mitchele Harlan, have 30 days to file an appeal.
“I understand that he did something wrong and he should be punished for what he did,” Cassandra said. “But I feel like that’s extreme. I feel like there’s people out here getting less time for murder and drugs and stuff like that. Breaking somebody’s jaw is a horrible thing to do, but 30 years is a very, very long time.”
Cassandra said her brother could still face more time for other charges and worries he could face what amounts to a life sentence. That prospect is devastating for the family, she said.
Gray said a 30-year sentence could have been avoided if Taylor had just obeyed the officers’ commands.
“I believe the sentence is appropriate under these circumstances and it was an offense over something that shouldn’t have happened,” Gray said. “But now we have a guard with a permanent injury that he’ll always remember.”
Harlan, Taylor’s attorney, could not be reached for comment by press time.