Former head nurse at Rockbridge Regional Jail convicted of falsifying documents

LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA – A federal jury in U.S. District Court in Lynchburg today (July 26th) convicted Gary Hassler, the former head nurse at Rockbridge Regional Jail, of falsifying documents in order to impede a federal investigation into civil rights abuses at the facility, First Assistant United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar announced.

“Today’s conviction shows that no person or institution can take steps to interfere in a federal investigation,” First Assistant Bubar stated. “I am grateful for the work of the FBI, Virginia State Police and Office of the Rockbridge County Commonwealth’s Attorney in bringing this case to justice.”

Hassler, 59, of Buena Vista, Va., was indicted in August 2018 and charged with two counts of falsifying documents in order to impede a federal investigation. Today, the jury convicted Hassler of one count of impeding a federal investigation into civil rights violations at the Rockbridge Regional Jail by falsifying a document. Evidence at trial showed that on March 5, 2017, Hassler falsified a document to claim an inmate at the jail refused medical care.

The investigation of the case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Virginia State Police. The Commonwealth Attorney’s Office for Rockbridge County assisted with the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Zachary T. Lee and Matthew Miller prosecuted the case for the United States.