ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Two Orange County corrections officers have been arrested for allegedly kicking and hitting an inmate. Twenty-nine-year-old Alton Mercer and 38-year-old Jose Ayala-Martinez were each charged Friday with a single count of battery.
An investigation found the two men began hitting and kicking the man after he refused to turn over a juice box. The inmate had been in a cell reserved for individuals with mental health or behavioral problems.
It wasn’t immediately clear if either man had an attorney. They have been on unpaid leave since the investigation began.
