DENVER — A Denver sheriff’s deputy is facing a 40-day suspension for excessive force, just three months after he was charged with assaulting a different inmate.

Randolph Romero, 51, had been accused of excessive force three times in a month.

The Denver District Attorney’s Office said Romero threw an inmate down to the ground inside an elevator on March 18 even though the inmate was handcuffed and wearing a spithood.

The Department of Safety has issued a 40-day suspension that begins Friday for a different incident on April 1.

Investigators with internals affairs say Romero entered the jail of an inmate, identified only by his initials, S.H.

The inmate had covered his cell camera with toilet paper.

Romero violated department rules by entering the cell alone without another deputy and got into an oral argument with the inmate.

At one point, the inmate took off his socks and shoes, and assumed a fighting stance challenging Romero to a fight.

According to video in the jail, Romero rushed the inmate and swung at him but missed. The inmate then hit Romero three times in the groin before he was subdued by other deputies who rushed into the cell.

Romero is due in Denver Municipal Court later this week to enter a plea for the elevator incident on March 18.

He also faces an internal investigation for an excessive force allegation that supposedly occurred on March 3.