Former Philadelphia prison guard pleads guilty to civil rights violations, falsifying records

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A former sergeant at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia pleaded guilty Thursday to violating the civil rights of inmates and falsifying documentation of his actions, federal prosecutors said in a written statement.

According to court documents, Christopher Knight, 47, pepper-sprayed five inmates over a three-month period in 2023, including individuals who were already handcuffed, restrained or not posing a threat. He was indicted in May of last year.

He sprayed the first inmate on Jan. 8, 2023, while he was lying facedown with his hands held behind his back, while being handcuffed, and then after he was handcuffed, prosecutors said.

Two days later, Knight pepper-sprayed the second inmate, who was handcuffed and being escorted down a hallway by another guard, according to prosecutors. Knight also sprayed a third inmate as he was returning to his cell and again after being handcuffed, court documents state.

On March 20, 2023, prosecutors say that Knight pepper-sprayed the fourth inmate while he was writing on a piece of paper and continued to spray the man while he was on the ground in pain. Then on March 24, Knight sprayed the fifth inmate while he was lying facedown on the ground, prosecutors say.

Knight also excluded details of his involvement in the incidents in multiple use-of-force reports, according to prosecutors.

Knight is scheduled for sentencing on July 15. He faces up to 90 years in prison.