Former Hillsdale deputy pleads guilty to repeatedly pepper spraying prison inmate

HILLSDALE COUNTY, MI – A former Hillsdale County Sheriff’s sergeant has pleaded guilty after being accused of assaulting a female inmate at the county jail.

Ronald Leggitt, 44, of Marshall, pleaded guilty to one count of malfeasance and one count of aggravated assault for repeatedly spraying pepper spray in the face of a female jail inmate while she was held just inches from his eyes, according to the announcement. By the Michigan Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday, November 26.

As part of his request, he agreed to waive his MCOLES certification, making him no longer eligible to be a police officer anywhere in Michigan, authorities said.

Relating to: Hillsdale sergeant accused of pepper spraying restrained inmate multiple times, faces 7 felonies

“With this conviction, Mr. Leggitt was stripped of his ability to serve as a police officer in Michigan, preventing him from harming others under his authority,” said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. “My ministry is committed to holding accountable those who abuse their positions.”

Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 29 before Jackson County Circuit Judge John McBain.

Leggitt was arraigned on March 17 on six counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of misconduct. He is currently on unpaid administrative leave from the sheriff’s office.

Police arrested the woman on Dec. 16, 2021, and she allegedly became combative with jail deputies during the booking process, authorities said.

Officers brought the woman to the jail, where Leggitt supervised operations and staff. Authorities said staff at the prison were notified that the woman resisted officers during her arrest and continued to exhibit resistant and disruptive behavior as she entered the prison.

According to the attorney general’s office, Leggitt attacked the prisoner six times over the course of 80 minutes by using an aerosol object holder, commonly known as mace or pepper spray, to spray the chemical irritant from a distance of several centimeters.

In five of the six alleged assaults, the victim was placed in an emergency chair and prevented from moving with wrist and ankle cuffs and by holding his chest, authorities said.

Six days after the alleged assault, on Dec. 22, 2021, Michigan State Police contacted the Hillsdale County Sheriff’s Office to report that several troopers witnessed Leggitt use excessive force on the arrested woman, Hillsdale County Sheriff Scott Hodshire said in a written statement.

Hodshire said the sheriff’s office launched an internal investigation and contacted the Michigan Sheriff’s Association team to ask them to begin its own investigation as an independent third party.

Leggitt was assigned to administrative duties only during the internal investigation. Hodshire said the association team sent its findings to the Attorney General’s Office in February 2022.

Leggitt continued to work for the sheriff’s office until March 13, when the sheriff’s office was notified of the pending charges and placed him on unpaid leave. He is no longer employed by the Hillsdale County Sheriff’s Office.

A lawsuit was filed Nov. 20 in U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan, seeking damages for Leggitt’s use of excessive force, infliction of emotional distress, and the failure of the sheriff’s office to intervene and stop his actions.

The lawsuit alleges the woman was drunk, had a mental recovery crisis, and was suicidal when she was brought to prison.

Mental health providers told jail staff he should be in the hospital, not jail, but he was not transferred, the lawsuit alleged.

Attorneys for the woman and Hillsdale County did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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