Alex Friedmann was arrested in early 2020 after a monthslong period in which he hid weapons in the walls of the new Davidson County jail while it was under construction. Friedmann's legal team has now shared additional information with the court ahead of his Oct. 6 sentencing, including details about severe trauma resulting from violent sexual assaults Friedmann says he survived while incarcerated in Davidson County in 1987. His lawyers are seeking leniency ahead of the sentencing, which comes after Friedmann was convicted of felony vandalism in July.
The sentencing memorandum filed Sept. 29 explains that Friedmann was “repeatedly gang raped by three inmates over two days” and was denied help by the jail’s correctional officer. It includes 18 letters from friends and colleagues supporting his request for leniency. Friedmann faces between 25 and 40 years in prison.
In a letter to Judge Steve Dozier, Friedmann recalls suffering an emotional breakdown during a 2018 tour of the old Davidson County jail. “I was escorted around the vacant facility while I took pictures for posting on a corrections-related website,” writes Friedmann. “But I also had another goal: to visit the cell where I had been raped, to obtain closure before the [Criminal Justice Center] was torn down. While my escort waited at the front of the cell block on the third floor, I went to the cell, broke down and cried for several minutes, then composed myself and finished the tour." He explains his efforts to store weapons in the new Davidson County Detention Center as a misguided attempt to guarantee himself security against further victimization if he were ever incarcerated in the future.
Nashville Sheriff Daron Hall characterizes Friedmann’s memo as a last-minute tactic to shift focus off of his actions. Hall tells the Scene that, along with the Davidson County District Attorney's office, he is preparing a victim impact statement — a tool usually reserved for grieving relatives or survivors of a crime — on behalf of the Davidson County Detention Center.
“There are rapes in jails, and I’m sure there are rapes in the community — none of those are good," Hall tells the Scene. "But I do not believe Alex Friedmann was raped. He deserves to serve a maximum sentence, which is really what tomorrow is supposed to be about. Instead, he’s talking about him being victimized. His story doesn't make sense, but we’re all talking about it.” Hall points out that demolition of the old jail occurred in 2016, confusing the details around Friedmann’s 2018 return.
Such sensitive circumstances are now left to Judge Dozier, who has overseen Friedmann’s case from arraignment to jury trial.
Friedmann is the former managing editor of Prison Legal News and built a career as a writer and prisoners’ rights advocate after being incarcerated in the 1990s.
