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Ex-Guard Gets 6 Years For NYC Jail Beatings

NEW YORK (AP) -- A New York City jail guard has been sentenced to six years in prison for ordering inmate beatings as part of a rogue disciplinary system.

Lloyd Nicholson was convicted in June of gang assault charges.

Prosecutors said he imposed order in a unit at the city's Rikers Island jail complex by having teenage inmates beat other teenagers who had stepped out of line.

One attack left a young prisoner with a punctured lung.

Nicholson said he was innocent, and was backed by the union that represents jail guards.

They said the allegations were fabricated by the prisoners.

(Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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