Federal Inmate Sentenced to More Than 6 Additional Years in Prison for Assaulting Fellow Inmate in Federal Prison in Lassen County

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Willie James McNeal, 60, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to six years and five months in prison for an assault on another inmate that resulted in serious bodily injury, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. McNeal was also ordered to pay more than $39,000 in restitution, which includes restitution to the victim of the assault to cover resulting medical costs.

According to court documents, on May 25, 2015, McNeal, attacked another inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution at Herlong, causing multiple fractures of the bones in his face. The victim required two surgeries and experienced extreme pain, as well as disfigurement and impairment of his nasal and breathing functions. Two surveillance videos documented the assault. The videos showed that McNeal, after speaking briefly with the victim, punched him near his right eye. McNeal continued to punch the victim multiple times in the forehead before tossing the inmate onto the concrete floor.

On April 20, 2017, a federal jury in Sacramento found McNeal guilty of the assault.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Prisons. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Owen Roth and Amanda H. Beck prosecuted the case.