An officer guarding the Juvenile Unit at Her Majesty’s Prison beat a young inmate unconscious last July when he refused to wash some dishes, police said Monday.

Steve Morton, a prison officer at the Balsam Ghut facility, appeared in Magistrates’ Court before Senior Magistrate Valerie Stephens.

The officer was on duty on July 11 when he became upset after a juvenile inmate refused a dishwashing task, according to Crown Counsel Jude Hanley. That’s when Mr. Morton allegedly grabbed the young man, “threw him to the ground and pounded him several times, causing him to become unconscious,” Ms. Hanley said.

The inmate was treated for the alleged injuries and complained that he had a headache and a sore neck, the prosecutor added.

Mr. Morton denied the charges to police, Ms. Hanley said. The prison officer faces charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and plans to get a lawyer before his next appearance in court on Jan. 25.