http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/21/nyregion/rikers-island-beating-ronald-spear.html 2016-09-20 22:12:13 Ex-Rikers Officer Pleads Guilty to Helping Cover Up Fatal ’12 Beating of Inmate Byron Taylor admitted that he had conspired with other officers to obstruct an investigation into the death of Ronald Spear, who had kidney problems and walked with a cane. === A former correction officer at Prosecutors Mr. Taylor, who was scheduled to be tried next month with Mr. Coll, admitted on Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan that he had conspired with others to obstruct an investigation into Mr. Spear’s death. He said that he had made false statements to New York City’s Correction Department and the Bronx district attorney’s office, and that he had lied before a federal grand jury. “I knew what I was doing was illegal and wrong,” Mr. Taylor told Judge Loretta A. Preska. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct justice and to perjury. The correction commissioner, Joseph Ponte, said on Tuesday that Mr. Taylor, who had been suspended, would now be fired. “We have zero tolerance for any illegal behavior on the part of staff,” Mr. Ponte said, adding, “Everyone in our custody deserves to be treated in a just and humane manner.” New York City has Judge Preska said Mr. Taylor, who is to be sentenced on Dec. 20, could face up to 25 years in prison, although the suggested sentence under federal guidelines was 15 to 21 months. Mr. Taylor and his lawyer declined to comment after the hearing. At the time of the beating, Mr. Spear was being detained in a Rikers unit for inmates with serious medical needs, according to a complaint signed by an F.B.I. special agent, Vanessa M. Tibbits. It says Mr. Spear suffered from end-stage renal disease and required regular dialysis, and wore glasses and a bracelet that indicated he was a “risk of fall.” Early on Dec. 19, 2012, he and Mr. Coll got into a verbal altercation, stemming from Mr. Spear’s demands to see a doctor, the complaint says. It says the men started jabbing at each other, and Mr. Coll began punching Mr. Spear in the face. Another officer grabbed Mr. Spear and with Mr. Taylor’s help, pinned him down. The complaint says Mr. Coll kicked Mr. Spear several times in the head, and knelt down, telling him, “Remember that I’m the one who did this to you.” Mr. Coll has pleaded not guilty to charges that include death resulting from deprivation of rights under color of law. If convicted, he could face life in prison. His lawyer, Sam A. Schmidt, said: “Byron Taylor pled guilty to what he did. This is not what Mr. Coll did.” The Correction Department said Mr. Coll left its employ in 2014. Prosecutors have said the officers agreed to offer a “false version of events” and lied repeatedly to investigators.