Eight corrections officers and an incarcerated man have landed in the hospital following a riot involving around 200 inmates in a Southern California recreational prison yard. The violence erupted around 10 a.m. on Wednesday, January 31, 2024.
According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, correctional officers were escorting an inmate across the yard as part of a contraband investigation at Ironwood State Prison in Blythe. However, it escalated into a riot when the inmate headbutted a staff member as he was being subdued.
Then, approximately 200 prisoners rushed toward the officers, attacking them with fists and rocks, the CDCR said in a statement. Despite several orders, the prisoners refused to comply with the guards’ orders. Consequently, they deployed a rifle warning round.
Afterward, the statement said officers used “chemical agents and non-lethal impact rounds” to get the inmates under control. As a result, the CDCR said they moved eight staff members and one prisoner who required hospitalization to another facility.
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The agency claims they moved them for a “higher level of care.” Although the extent of their injuries remains unknown, the facility reportedly discharged them the following day. Afterward, the CDCR said the riot caused a 24-hour “modified programming” protocol in facilities throughout California.
So far, correctional officers have identified 30 inmates as having direct involvement in the riot, and the investigation is ongoing. The Ironwood facility has also restricted movement in yards and dayrooms for a day as officials conducted a routine threat assessment.
Ironwood, a minimum-medium security facility east of Los Angeles, opened in 1994 and houses about 2,500 male inmates. The January 31 riot at Ironwood State Prison has prompted a statewide threat assessment. Hence, authorities are restricting prisoners across the state to their cells.
According to the CDCR, the threat assessment is supposed to last only 24 hours. In addition, the agency also notified the state Office of the Inspector General about the incident and the investigation. The past few months have been a particularly violent time for California prisons.
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Recently, news about the sexual assault of a staffer at Sierra Conservation Center in Jamestown made headlines. Also, authorities have reported several homicides across the state correctional facilities. However, they have attributed many of the killings to gang violence.
Also, the state recorded the July 2023 fatal stabbing of an inmate, Michael “Mosca” Torres, who was at California State Prison, Sacramento. According to reports, he was awaiting trial in a federal racketeering case. However, officials concluded it was a problem within the Mexican Mafia prison gang and its subsidiaries.
While the Ironwood facility is still investigating the incident, it has notified the appropriate authorities. Also, the prison has identified some prisoners who directly participated in the riot. Hence, the CDCR warns that they will restrict movement inside Ironwood’s Facility D until the investigation ends.
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