Prison guard paralyzes teenage inmate

PLAINFIELD, Ind. -- A guard at a juvenile prison beat an inmate so severely the teenager was paralyzed, prosecutors said.\nShawn James, 30, was arrested Wednesday on felony charges of aggravated battery and neglect stemming from attacks on several inmates at the Plainfield Juvenile Correctional Facility.\nIf convicted of all the charges against him, James could face up to 47 years in prison and be fined up to $100,000. He was being held late Wednesday in the Hendricks County Jail.\nJames beat 18-year-old Joe Roberts on Dec. 26 when the inmate denied turning on a television set at the juvenile center west of Indianapolis, Indiana State Police Sgt. Brian W. Smith alleged in an affadavit. Roberts was in the state juvenile center on a conviction for intimidation.\nJames threw Roberts across a table, slammed him down and then banged his head into the ground, Smith said in the affadavit.\nThe attack crushed two bones in Roberts' neck and left him quadriplegic, doctors said. He was sent home Wednesday after undergoing surgery at Wishard Memorial Hospital in Indianapolis.\nThe Indiana Department of Corrections fired James after an internal investigation.\nJames hit inmates instead of issuing written reprimands as required by rules, Smith said. He said James' supervisors had warned James that he would be fired if he continued to strike inmates.\nSmith also said James threatened to beat other inmates who challenged his version of what occurred.\nJoe Roberts' father, Jean Roberts, said he was pleased that James was charged.\n"Guards are like police officers, they have to be held to a higher standard because they are in charge of our kids," he said.