By Jesse Paul

The Denver Post

PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. — A Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office jail deputy was taken to a hospital Monday evening with head lacerations after being “severely assaulted” by an inmate, authorities say.

The deputy had just opened a cell door to give 34-year-old James Twiford a meal around 5 p.m. when he rushed the officer, according to investigators.

James Twiford is now also facing two Class 4 felony charges of second-degree assault on a peace officer. (Photo/Pueblo County Sheriff's Office)

“Twiford seized both the radio and the tracking tool from the deputy’s duty belt and struck him over and over again on the face and head,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release. “Additional deputies arrived and helped the initial deputy regain control of the inmate.”

A second deputy was also hurt but was treated and released.

The sheriff’s office says an investigation found that while deputies typically deliver inmate meals through door slots in higher risk areas of the jail, the slot on Twiford’s cell was not working. That’s why the deputy was handing him a meal through the cell door.

Twiford was being held pending both for a sentencing out of Jefferson County and on controlled substance charges from Denver.

In the deputy assault, Twiford is now also facing two Class 4 felony charges of second-degree assault on a peace officer.

Pueblo County Sheriff Kirk Taylor said the assault is indicative of the dilapidated conditions at the jail, which he says is the most overcrowded county jail in the state. Pueblo County voters resoundingly rejected a sales tax increase in November to pay for a new facility.

“It can’t be stated enough,” Taylor said in a statement. “Current detention conditions pose additional safety risks.”

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