Correctional officer indicted for manslaughter in inmate’s death

LINCOLN, R.I. (WLNE) — The Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office said that a grand jury indicted a orrectional officer for manslaughter in the 2021 death of an inmate.

Attorney General Peter Neronha said that 43-year-old Geoffrey Peters was indicted with one count of involuntary manslaughter Friday.

Peters was allegedly “criminally negligent” to inmate Timothy McQuesten, while McQuesten was being held at the Adult Correctional Institution.

McQuesten was found unresponsive in his cell on Jan. 19.

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

However, now the investigation is over, he said the department is “able to continue with our process.”

“The allegations against Mr. Peters are extremely serious and do not reflect the professionalism and attention to duty required of a correctional officer and performed by our staff each and every day,” Patricia Coyne-Fague, the director of the Department of Corrections, said Friday.

Ventura said the 43-year-old has been employed with the Department of Corrections since 2006.

Peters is set to be arraigned in Providence County Superior Court on July 20.