UPDATED: Child-molesting cop moved out of state for his safety
Former Colorado Springs Police Officer, Joshua Carrier, a convicted child molester, is no longer serving his sentence in Colorado, KRDO NEWSCHANNEL 13 has learned.
The Colorado Department of Corrections says Carrier was moved for his own protection — the same reason victims and their families have not been told where Carrier is serving time.
Carrier was sentenced to 70 years in prison for molesting 18 boys at Horace Mann Middle School, where he worked as a School Resource Officer and wrestling coach. Upon his arrest, Carrier was kept in a private cell and separated from other inmates at the El Paso County Jail, and assigned a personal guard during transfers.
KRDO NewsChannel 13 confirmed that the convicted child molester, now 34, is serving his sentence at a medium security prison on the east coast, over fears for his safety. He was originally sentenced to a Colorado prison.
The move didn’t surprise Larry Nutter, a retired correctional captain who worked for the Colorado DOC for nearly 23 years.
“Sex offenders are not well regarded in prison. Police officers are not well regarded in prison. When you mix police officer and sex offender in the same person, they really are not well liked in prison,” he said.
While he doesn’t represent the DOC, Nutter knows inmate behavior.
“If you’re a sex offender, they’ll tell you you have to pay rent. You have to pay them, or they’ll kill you, and I’ve had inmates in my church get killed that way, refusing to pay,” he said. “They’ll show up in your cell, with a lock and a sock and beat you to death.”
A spokeswoman with the Colorado Department of Corrections says Carrier was swapped in exchange for another out-of-state inmate, for Carrier’s protection.
Nutter said this system is used more often than people know. The inmates in the out-of-state prison won’t know why Carrier is in prison. He said the transfer isn’t just about Carrier’s safety, it’s also about the safety of correctional officers that could get hurt while protecting him.
Carrier was found guilty of fondling the teen boys, under the guise of performing “skin checks” for wrestling. Carrier filmed the so-called exams with a web camera. He was originally arrested for possessing child pornography.
