Prison Guards Sentenced for Allowing Inmates to Rape Teen

Two former prison guards, Shawn Freeman and Wesley Lanham, have been sentenced for federal prison for 14 years and 15 years respectively for allowing inmates to rape an 18-year-old locked up overnight on traffic violations. U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves sentenced the two in an important — and rare — punishment for the prison rape — a largely ignored epidemic in our prisons.

Freeman, 31, and Lanham, 36, were former guards at the Grant County, Kentucky Detention Center. They teased the teenage about his slight appearance and told him that he would be made a “girlfriend” of other inmates. They then solicited the other inmates who raped him. They then falsified their reports. The teen was accused of speeding and fleeing a police cruiser on Feb. 13, 2003.

A third guard, Clinton Sydnor, pleaded guilty and agreed to testify against Lanham and Freeman. Reeves was sentenced him to seven years and six months in prison.

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