Former Oklahoma inmates sue jailers for torturing them by playing 'Baby Shark' song on loop

Popular nursery song ‘Baby Shark’ has been enjoyed by children as well as adults alike. However, the tune has become addictive for many and some have even used it as part of their torture tactics. Now, four former jail inmates at Oklahoma City in the US have even gone ahead and filed a lawsuit against the Oklahoma county sheriff and other jailers for using the song as a device to torment them in the prison. In 2019, the prisoners said they had to undergo torture which included verbal and physical assault. But what came as a surprise was that they were forced to listen to ‘Baby Shark’ song for hours, they claimed. The lawsuit has been filed against the county sheriff, Tommie Johnson III, the jail trust, two former officers, and the county commissioners. Daniel Hedrick, one of the four prisoners, said he was handcuffed and secured to a wall, while the song kept playing loudly on loop for hours. Another ex-prisoner, Joseph Mitchell said he went through the same experience twice. The lawsuit mentions psychologist John Mayer’s lines from an article, which states that the South Korean entertainment company’s song ‘Baby Shark’ has the capacity to elicit a painful reaction in the brain as the song has tunes that are high pitched and is also screechy, which can hurt ears. According to the reports, the incidents took place in November and December 2019 when the former jail inmates were all in custody, awaiting trial at the Oklahoma County Detention Center. The then supervisor along with two 21-year-old jail officers face misdemeanor cruelty charges, in addition to the lawsuit. While the supervisor is already retired, the two jail officers have resigned from their jobs. David Prater, the Oklahoma County District Attorney, said that he preferred to charge the accused with a felony but it was unfortunate that he could not find any appropriate statute to do so.