Correctional officer facing manslaughter charge pleads not guilty

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — A correctional officer, who is facing a manslaughter charge in connection to an inmate’s death, pleaded not guilty in court on Wednesday.

Geoffrey Peters, 43, faces a felony manslaughter charge, after the 2021 death of Timothy McQuesten.

McQuesten was found unresponsive in his cell at the Adult Correctional Institution on Jan 19. He was being held after he was charged in the double murder of a Lincoln couple.

Peters was allegedly “criminally negligent” to McQuesten.

J.R. Ventura, a spokesman for the Department of Corrections, told ABC 6 News in a statement earlier this month that Peters was placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the investigation.