A former correctional officer on Wednesday passionately testified against two ofthe three men charged with the beating death of an inmate at the Baltimore Central Booking and Intake Center in 2005.
With his voice raised, Jamile Boles told a Baltimore City Circuit Court jury that he saw former correctional officers Dameon Woods and James Hatcher assault Raymond Smoot on May 14, 2005, in a brutal beating that ultimately killed the 51-year-old inmate.
“Woods stomped Smoot on the head and Hatcher struck Smoot,” Boles testified, pointing his finger at the men.
“The reason I came forward was because it was the right thing to do.”
Boles? testimony drew cheers from family members of Smoot and marked a contrast to Tuesday?s testimony when one witness refused to testify, and another came down with memory loss.
Woods, Hatcher and Nathan Colbert are charged with second-degree murder, assault and conspiracy in Smoot?s death.
Boles had testified earlier in the trial, but attorneys recalled him after defense lawyers discovered a statement he made to jail authorities that differed from his testimony against Woods and Hatcher.
In an earlier statement, Boles told authorities he did not know who assaulted Smoot.
Boles initially said he “couldn?t tell who was in the cell delivering the blows.”
Defense attorneys argued that Boles changed his story to incriminate the men after he and several other officers conspired to put the blame on the three. Boles? changed testimony makes him an unreliable witness and a “liar,” said Hatcher?s attorney, Andrew Alperstein.
Boles said he was initially reluctant to incriminate other officers, but later decided to come forward.
Prosecutors are expected to rest their case either Friday or early next week.
