BOYLE COUNTY, Ky. — A Lexington federal jury found a former Kentucky sheriff's deputy guilty of criminal violations and obstruction of justice.
Tanner Abbott, 31, worked for the Boyle County Sheriff's Office.
Evidence showed that Abbott willfully violated the civil rights of four people during the first four months of 2021, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Authorities said he used excessive force while arresting them and obstructed justice by writing and directing another officer to write false reports to cover up his violations.
Evidence presented at trial on Jan. 20, 2021 showed that Abbott conducted a traffic stop on two men driving to a restaurant in Danville, Kentucky. When the driver asked Abbott if he could speak with his supervisor, Abbott punched him in the face, pulled him out of the car and hit him several more times. The driver wasn't resisting arrest or posing any threat.
Police said when the passenger, the driver’s brother, got out of the car he begged Abbott to stop hitting his brother. Abbott then hit him in the face with his elbow, breaking his glasses.
Not even two weeks later, documents show Abbott was involved in another traffic stop where the passenger of the vehicle was arrested. While the passenger was being handcuffed, Abbott punched him in the face. The passenger's actions posed no threat. Abbott then conspired with another officer to write a report in which the other officer falsely alleged that the victim had "advanced aggressively" toward Abbott before being punched.
On March 31, 2021, police said Abbott went to a hotel in Harrodsburg, Kentucky and searched the room of one of the guests. He got a key to the room he wanted to search by falsely telling hotel staff that he had a search warrant. Abbott then wrote a false report in which he claimed the guest had consented to the search.
A month later, authorities said Abbott arrested a driver who didn't pull over when he tried to conduct a traffic stop. After the chase ended and the driver had been handcuffed, Abbott punched the driver in the face. The driver wasn't resisting arrest or posing any threat.
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“This case is a disgraceful example of betrayal of trust, a profound violation of the rights of others, and a danger to our communities,” U.S. Attorney Carlton S. Shier IV for the Eastern District of Kentucky said. “When those charged with enforcing the law and protecting the public turn to violating the rights of others and trying to cover it up, that does real damage. It not only injures victims, but also undermines the hard work and true dedication of so many in law enforcement."
“We’re grateful to this jury of Kentucky citizens who held an officer accountable for repeatedly and violently brutalizing people he was arresting, even though they were not resisting arrest and did not pose a threat,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said.
Abbott was convicted of four counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, one count of conspiracy, and one count of falsification of records within federal jurisdiction.
He was found not guilty of one count of deprivation of rights under color of law.
Abbott's sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 7 at 10:00 a.m.
The FBI Louisville Field Office investigated the case.
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