BONNERS FERRY — A former Boundary County Jail employee accused of aggravated battery for allegedly harming an inmate in January 2023 entered a not guilty plea on the charges during a Jan. 7 arraignment.  

Former deputy Bryant Brown, 37, entered the plea out of custody after posting a $50,000 bond in September 2025. He is expected to stand trial for the aggravated battery charges on May 11 during a four-day setting, with a pretrial conference slated for April 22.  

If convicted, Brown could face up to 15 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.  

Officials became aware of the incident in early September 2025, when a report was filed alleging Brown of misconduct at work. Upon review of the suggested incident, video observations revealed a Jan. 3, 2023, scuffle inside a jail cell, allegedly involving Brown and an inmate.  

Documents contend that the victim had been arrested for a misdemeanor warrant out of Kootenai County, where he was brought to the Boundary County Jail for processing. The man was allegedly uncooperative during the process, intoxicated and verbally abusing Brown, who was escorting him to a secured holding cell.  

An affidavit suggests that upon hearing aggressive statements from the victim, Brown “lunged into the holding cell behind [the victim] and an apparent scuffle ensued inside of the cell, outside of sight of the hall cameras.” Audible noises were documented to have been heard outside of the cell.  

The holding cell camera captured the alleged altercation between the former deputy and inmate, where Brown was seen shoving the man against the cell window, striking the victim in several places while his “body slumped into a plastic chair, apparently stunned and not resisting.”  

An information document noted swelling of the victim’s eyes and face, along with large facial lacerations.  

He was eventually taken to seek medical attention and booked into Kootenai County Jail following several other jail deputies entering the holding cell during Brown’s alleged abuse.