The Associated Press

COVINGTON, Ky. --

Clinton Shawn Sydnor, 29, of Falmouth; Wesley Lanham 30, of Dry Ridge; and Shawn Freeman, 35, of Irvine, were indicted last week on charges of conspiracy against rights; deprivation of rights under color of law; and destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations.

They appeared in court Thursday and were released on their own recognizance.

The charges against the former Grant County guards stem from a Feb. 14, 2003 incident in which the three men are accused of soliciting a group of felons housed in an isolated section of the jail to sexually assault a teenage inmate.

Sydnor, a one-time shift supervisor at the jail, has been charged with an additional count of destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations, as well as one count of witness tampering.

The indictments came after a nearly five-year investigation by the U.S. Justice Department's civil rights division.

The indictment alleges that Sydnor, Lanham and Freeman taunted an 18-year-old high school student who had been brought to the detention center on a speeding charge.

The deputies teased the teenager about his physical appearance and told him that he would make a good "girlfriend" for the other inmates. The indictment alleges that the defendants then solicited a group of convicted felons housed in a general population cell to sexually assault the teenager.

The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison and fines of $250,000.

Sydnor was appointed a public defender after he said he worked at UPS in Hebron and could not afford a lawyer. Lawyers for the two defendants were not immediately available for comment

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