From [HERE] A former warden and other top officers in the Allegheny County Jail helped cover up the 2010 brutal beating of an inmate, the FBI says in a secret file the Tribune-Review obtained.

Ex-Maj. James Donis, 50, was sentenced last week to eight months in a halfway house, plus five years' probation, for falsifying reports to hide how he physically abused Gary Barbour, 31, after the inmate's bungled April 6, 2010, prison escape.

The internal FBI file, containing more than 1,000 pages and photos, reveals that officers other than Donis sanitized incident reports; failed to investigate when alerted to the abuse; lied repeatedly to investigators; and allegedly retaliated against a guard suspected of telling on Donis, the fourth highest-ranking official in the jail.

U.S. Attorney David Hickton on Monday defended focusing prosecution on Donis but wouldn't say why the office did not prosecute others.

“The protection of civil rights is a top priority — this includes the civil rights of incarcerated prisoners who are protected under the law from beating and excessive force by prison guards,” Hickton said in a written statement to the Trib. “Mr. Donis was a major in the prison system and, as such, occupied a position of leadership and trust. The decision to prosecute him was based upon the law and the facts. He pled guilty. While we asked for a prison sentence, we respect the decision of the court, and justice was done.”

Hickton declined to comment on another explosive revelation that the file contains: A jail officer became FBI Confidential Source S-00032885, wearing a wire that recorded Donis and others inside the prison on two occasions.

To protect the informant's safety, the Tribune-Review won't disclose the name. Barbour, the inmate who was beaten, filed a federal civil suit seeking $1.2 million in damages for his physical and mental injuries allegedly resulting from his abuse at the jail.