Published: October 30, 2009 10:43 am      

Two jail guards demoted, others disciplined over forgotten man

ELKHART — Elkhart County Sheriff Mike Books has released the names of two officers disciplined after an incident Saturday at the jail.

A day-reporting inmate with the Sheriff’s Alternative Program was accidentally locked in a holding cell for nearly 12 hours Saturday. The door closed as William Scott Roberts, 40, Elkhart, was cleaning the cell.

In a previous statement, Books said that officers and supervisors on both first and second shifts failed to account for Roberts throughout the day.

Sheriff’s staffers who were disciplined include:

• Cpl. Steve Yoder, who was served with a formal action notice for dereliction of duty, neglect of duty and violation of department policy on key handling. Yoder will also be demoted to the position of corrections officer II and serve a three-day, unpaid suspension. He will also receive training on General Orders pertaining to security protocol.

• Cpl. Daryl Burdette was served with a formal action notice for dereliction of duty and neglect of duty. Burdette will be demoted to the position of corrections officer II. He also will receive training on General Orders pertaining to security protocol.

In addition, four other corrections officers of no rank received written reprimands and requirements for additional training. One received an employee consultation form.