NEWARK, N.J. — A Passaic County Correctional Officer has pleaded guilty to assaulting a pretrial detainee and conspiring to obstruct justice in connection with the incident, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.
Sergeant Donald Vinales, 39, of New Jersey, entered his plea on Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Michael E. Farbiarz in Newark federal court. He pleaded guilty to one count of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
According to court documents, the incident occurred at the Passaic County Jail on January 23, 2021, one day after a detainee had squirted a mixture containing urine onto another correctional officer. Vinales, along with Sergeant Jose Gonzalez and Correctional Officer Lorenzo Bowden, took the handcuffed detainee through an area of the facility known as a “blind spot,” lacking surveillance coverage.
While in that area, Vinales admitted he and Gonzalez knocked the detainee to the ground and struck him multiple times. The detainee was hospitalized the following day, with medical staff documenting injuries from the assault.
Despite the facility’s policy requiring documentation for use-of-force incidents, none of the involved officers submitted any reports. In April 2022, following the issuance of federal subpoenas, Vinales and the others met and agreed to withhold cooperation and deny any assault occurred.
Ongoing federal case and penalties
During an October 2022 interview with federal agents, Bowden falsely claimed no assault had taken place and denied any post-incident communication among the involved parties. Bowden later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct justice on April 18, 2024, and is awaiting sentencing.
The charge of deprivation of rights under color of law carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The conspiracy to obstruct justice charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.
Vinales is scheduled to be sentenced on September 30.
