By John Vincent
Sentinel & Enterprise, Fitchburg, Mass.
WORCESTER, Mass. — Three prison guards have been charged with assaulting two convicts in 2024, after breaking up an assault by the inmates on some guards at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley.
They were arraigned in Worcester Superior Court on Friday, July 10.
Guards Stephen Cobb and Paul E. Birri were arraigned on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a felony, and committing a civil rights violation, a misdemeanor. Guard Shaun Gould was arraigned on a charge of assault and battery, a misdemeanor.
All three pleaded not guilty and were released on personal recognizance, with conditions that they have no contact with anyone involved in the case.
The victims in the case, identified through court records, Jose Crespo and Jeffrey Tapia , were reportedly involved in an altercation with prison guards on Sept. 18, 2024 , which resulted in identical charges against those two inmates of mayhem, armed assault with intent to murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and two counts of assault and battery, as well as another inmate, Heriberto Rivera-Negron , who was charged with assault and battery on a correctional facility employee and strangulation or suffocation. All three inmates pleaded not guilty to all charges, and all three cases are still active, with no decision yet.
Crespo, of Newark, New Jersey , along with a second man who pleaded guilty, had been convicted in a gruesome murder case from 2016 in Fitchburg in which Kevin Cabrera-Soto , 24, of Fitchburg , had his hands tied behind his back and was then burned in a fire. Crespo was given a mandatory life sentence with no chance for parole.
Then, on Sept. 18, 2024 , several inmates, including Crespo, Tapia and Rivera-Negron, were accused of attacking correction officers, with homemade “shiv” weapons at the state’s only maximum-security prison, Souza-Baranowski, at around 6:20 p.m. There was a report of multiple correction officers being injured inside the prison.
Two officers were reportedly doing their hourly rounds when they were attacked from behind by inmates. One of the guards was stabbed 12 times, and the other guard was stabbed in the back and the head. In all, five officers were injured: two suffering from stab wounds and three more injured while responding to the fracas.
The new charges heard on July 10 are against several of the guards, who are being accused of assaulting some of the prisoners after the attack had been quelled, later on Sept. 18, 2024 .
In the case against guard Shaun Gould , Assistant Attorney General Kristin Sullivan said Gould responded to the initial incident and “gained physical control of an incarcerated individual, J.C. The incarcerated individual was secured with both wrist and ankle restraints. After the restraints were put on J.C., he was placed in the ‘recovery position’ on his side, with his arms secured behind him. After placing J.C. on his side, the defendant used his knee to forcefully strike J.C. in the abdomen.”
In the case against guard Stephen Cobb , the Attorney General’s Office stated that after the initial incident, Cobb escorted Jose Costa upstairs to the Health Service Unit and put him in a holding cell, where he was lying on the floor, face-up with both wrist and ankles restraints on. “The defendant (Cobb) used his foot to kick J.C. in the area of his abdomen and chest. The defendant was wearing boots at the time.”
The AG’s Office said guard Paul Birri was the lieutenant in charge of the Health Services Unit corridor, and another inmate who was said to be involved in the attack on the guards, Jeffrey Tapia , was brought up to that hall, secured by both ankle and wrist restraints, and was brought near a holding cell, and “the defendant (Birri) took control of J.T. and forcefully pushed him into the cell up against the concrete wall at the back of the cell. He then grabbed J.T.'s head with both hands, pulled it back, and slammed it back into the concrete wall. He continued to engage with J.T., at one point pulling J.T. up by the arms and dropping him back down so that J.T.'s face slammed against the wall and he slid to the ground.”
A fourth guard, Matthew Valade, had his case rescheduled on his own request, but is set to be arraigned on two charges of assault and battery and one charge of committing a civil rights violation.
The state Department of Correction said that Cobb remains detached without pay; Gould is on administrative assignment and is no longer assigned to the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center ; Valade resigned in August 2025, and Birri is detached without pay. The DOC said it will continue to monitor the outcome of the case.
“The alleged misconduct contained in these indictments does not reflect the Department’s standards and values. We remain committed to preserving the safety, rights and dignity of every person in our custody and continue to expect our officers to serve with the highest level of professionalism,” said DOC Commissioner Shawn Jenkins . “Following an internal investigation, the Department referred this matter to the Attorney General’s Office and has cooperated with their investigation. We remain steadfast in our goal to protect the integrity of our Department and the reputation of our staff who serve the Commonwealth with professionalism.”
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