By Eric Conklin
nj.com
WOODBURY, N.J. — A former New Jersey corrections officer has been sentenced to five years in state prison for attacking an inmate in 2017, officials said.
Cortlen S. Flax, 37, of Woodbury, received a five-year sentence without the possibility of parole on Friday, according to the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office.
Flax was convicted in July of second-degree official misconduct and simple assault.
The misconduct charge carried a potential sentence of up to 10 years, with a minimum of five years before parole eligibility.
The judge merged the assault conviction with the misconduct offense.
Flax, who became a state prison guard in 2013, was accused of entering inmate Julio Valdez’s cell at South Woods State Prison in Bridgeton and striking him in the head, rupturing his eardrum.
Prosecutors said the attack occurred on Feb. 14, 2017, after an encounter in the prison dining hall. Valdez, 61, of Jersey City, was serving time for burglary and criminal mischief.
According to a later lawsuit, Valdez spoke to Flax in Spanish while looking for a seat, which allegedly aggravated the officer.
Valdez claimed Flax gestured for him to return to his cell, then followed him there, shouted at him, and struck him unconscious.
The lawsuit also alleged Flax tried to cover up the injury and that other guards ignored Valdez as he passed by. Valdez was treated the next morning at the infirmary, 13 hours after the attack.
Valdez later filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in 2019, alleging the assault stemmed from a language barrier and caused lasting injuries, including hearing loss, severe headaches, nightmares, and PTSD symptoms.
The case was settled that year under undisclosed terms.
Flax’s attorneys, Stuart J. Alterman and Donna O’Brien, sought a new trial in September, arguing that evidence presented to the jury did not accurately depict the assault.
The request was denied, as was a motion for bail pending appeal.
Alterman said he plans to appeal, challenging testimony from a physician who examined Valdez, claiming the doctor was not qualified as an ear, nose, and throat expert.
“We would want to overturn the conviction,” Alterman said, adding that cases like this discourage people from becoming law enforcement officers.
Valdez’s civil attorney, Jason Kanterman, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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