Quitano was also charged with obstruction of justice.
Seman and Quitano were arrested, but were released after posting bail.
The charges against them stemmed from the revelation of former inmate Robert Jake Palacios who said he was assaulted at the corrections facility by Seman and Quitano on June 17, 2009.
Chief Prosecutor Kevin A. Lynch moved for the dismissal of the charges on Aug. 27, and Presiding Judge Robert C. Naranja granted the motion on Sept. 2.
According to Lynch, “The commonwealth believes this criminal case should be dismissed so that all the actions of the defendants can be addressed by one adjudicating body rather than having two somewhat parallel proceedings proceed through both the Superior Court and the administrative process of the Department of Corrections.”
He added, “Upon dismissal of this action, the commonwealth will be referring the matter for the commencement of formal action within the Department of Corrections.”
Lynch said the department has an “effective administrative procedures in place to address action of Corrections personnel that violate the standards of conduct imposed by Corrections rules and regulations.”
He said the case “presents issues regarding apparent violations of the rules and regulations governing the Department of Corrections that are addressable in an administrative proceeding, but do not fall within the subject matter jurisdiction of the Superior Court.”
He added that “the acts complained of happened during an incident when a belligerent inmate of the Department of Corrections was not compliant with the rules of conduct regarding incarcerated persons.”
But the prosecution also believes “that the conduct of the officers…did not conform with the rules governing the conduct of Corrections officers in their dealings with inmates.”
