Former law enforcement officer Anthony “Tony” Bean was sentenced on Friday in Chattanooga to serve six years in federal prison.
Bean, 61, of Altamont, was sentenced by Judge Travis R. McDonough.
Bean was earlier convicted of using excessive force against an arrestee on two occasions during an arrest in 2014, while Bean was the chief of the Tracy City Police Department, and of using excessive force against another man during an arrest in 2017, while Bean was the chief deputy of the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office.
Following his imprisonment, Bean will be on supervised release for 24 months.
In June of 2021, the court heard evidence over the course of three days that showed that, during an arrest in the Tracy Lakes area of Grundy County in 2014, Bean repeatedly punched an arrestee in the face while he was handcuffed and compliant, causing him pain and other injuries.
The court also heard evidence that, during an arrest in Grundy County in 2017, Bean punched another man in the face while he was compliant, causing pain and other injuries.
The court also heard evidence that Bean bragged about using excessive force against victims and failed to report his uses of force.
“Law enforcement officers who violate victims’ rights also violate the trust of their communities,” said Deputy Attorney General Kristen Clarke. “The Department of Justice will hold accountable those officers who abuse their authority, wherever they may be.”
“Nobody is above the law,” said U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton. “The defendant, Anthony “Tony” Bean abused his authority and violated the civil rights of arrestees by physically assaulting them while they were restrained and not posing any threat. A sentence of 72 months sends a strong message to the community that the abuse of arrestees will not be tolerated, and law enforcement officers who break the law will be held accountable for their actions.”
“When an officer betrays the oath to protect and serve, the public is put at risk and the law enforcement community is tarnished,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico. “The public has a right to trust that officers will do the right thing. When they don't, the FBI remains committed to investigate and bring them to justice.”
The case was investigated by the Knoxville Division of the FBI and was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Kathryn E. Gilbert and Andrew Manns of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant United States Attorney James Brooks of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee.