After an inmate claimed he was attacked and injured by guards at a Littlefield-area commitment facility, police disagreed, saying the wounds were self-inflicted.
Lonnie Welsh claimed the guards at the Texas Civil Commitment Center beat him up, causing bruises to his face,along with “head injuries.” Witnesses inside the facility reported Welsh actually hurt himself, even punching himself in the face repeatedly.
It all started Monday morning, when guards at the Commitment Center were trying to transport Welsh to a medical appointment. Then, video evidence revealed he became hostile and belligerent as they tried to return him to his cell. About 10 minutes later, other facility residents said Welsh began injuring himself.
Littlefield Police began investigating the incident, confirming that Welsh did self-harm, causing injury.
Welsh is being held in the Lamb County jail, facing felony charges for fabricating evidence.
“Understandably some people might think that is a little unfair, but when you lie to law enforcement and try to make and fabricate a claim against somebody else, that should be taken seriously,” Sergeant Steven Farley said. “Because if there’s no harsh repercussions for it, people would just lie all the time and not worry about suffering any consequences.”
