Some of the DVDs showed fights between inmates, Bridges said. April 2011 - Richard Neely, a former top administrator at Lanesboro, was charged with felony obstruction of justice following allegations that he destroyed video footage that might have shown officers using excessive force in a fight with inmates. Two pending federal lawsuits allege that Wall and his officers sold weapons to gang members. He goes straight to Cook, who is bleeding, and motions for him to get down on his knees. John Sapper is appointed as the new administrator at Bertie Correctional Institution in Windsor. The disclosures raise new questions about the role that corrections officers have played in violence at the high-security prison in Anson County. Walker said she cant discuss specifics, but the investigation was not related to the Turner case. Please enter valid email address to continue. By Ames Alexander - aalexander@charlotteobserver.com. Three correctional officers were assaulted late last week at the same state prison where an officer was killed two years ago. The incident was reported around 1:30 p.m. at the Lanesboro Correctional Institution in Polkton. Meggan Callahan was killed there allegedly by an inmate who beat her to death with a fire extinguisher. Inmates indicted on murder charges for death and injury of fellow inmates The control booth officer sees the fight, picks up a radio and makes a call. Located in Polkton, about 45 miles east of Charlotte, Lanesboro has repeatedly drawn. He said three inmates believed to be involved in the assault have been identified and are being questioned. According to charges contained in the federal indictment, Blyther worked as a correctional officer at the Lanesboro Correctional Institution (LCI), since renamed Anson Correctional Institution, a state prison located in Polkton, North Carolina. A prison system veteran who earned about $41,000 a year, Wall was one of Lanesboros four unit managers, overseeing a block with nearly 300 inmates. The murder, which occurred on Thursday June 5 in the hours before Easley and his father planned to watch the first game of the NBA finals together, left his family devastated. Parsons, now retired, testified Tuesday that during his time at Lanesboro, he took a number of steps to reduce violence and keep weapons out of the hands of inmates. Two state investigators said they reached the same opinion. The Associated Press contributed to this report. His name has not been released. ANSON COUNTY, NC (WBTV) - Five former prisoners of Lanesboro Correctional in Anson County say guards at the prison helped gang-affiliated inmates get weapons and wage attacks. If (prison officials) cant answer that question, why cant they?. Cook, the target of the 2012 attack, was released from prison in March. Blyther is charged with use of interstate facility to facilitate bribery, which carries a maximum prison term of five years and a $250,000 fine; extortion under color of official right, which carries a maximum prison term of 20 years and a $250,000 fine; and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, which carries a maximum prison term of 10 years and a $250,000 fine. This story was originally published December 4, 2014, 6:58 PM. Moments earlier, the video shows former prison sergeant Jonathan Peguese making the identical gesture toward the office where one of the other suspects was held, the lawyers said. This story was originally published December 13, 2014, 4:41 PM. The dismissal letter, signed by Lanesboros acting administrator at the time, called Walls statement a clear threat of injury or harm to staff.. Relatives of those killed and human rights activists have both demanded and appealed for justice. [8], In April 2013, 23 policemen involved in the massacre were sentenced to 156 years in prison each for the killing of 13 inmates. The four staff members at the Lanesboro. Thats Wall in the white shirt and tie entering the hallway on the video. Reporters interviewed Cook in March, two days after he was released from prison. Three officers assaulted at Bertie Correctional Institution - WITN An official website of the United States government. Brian Dawe, executive director of the American Correctional Officer Intelligence Network (ACOIN), said Bertie like most of the nation's prisons appeared to be badly understaffed, based on the numbers that state prison officials provided to the Observer. Inmate Gregorio Cortez Vazquez pleaded guilty earlier this month to second-degree murder in Turners stabbing death and was sentenced to up 16 additional years in prison. ANSON COUNTY, N.C. One inmate is dead after an incident at Lanesboro Correctional Center in Anson County. August 2011 - Eighteen inmates assaulted staff members throughout the month. It is a close custody facility, which is the equivalent of maximum security. Hands among the dead were found in front of the face or behind the head suggesting defensive positions. Feds, state investigating gangs at NC prison | Rock Hill Herald An officer at the gate house said Wall was upset and had a gun visible in his car, which violates prison policy. The Carandiru massacre (Portuguese: Massacre do Carandiru, Portuguese: [msaki du kdiu]) occurred on Friday, 2 October 1992, in Carandiru Penitentiary in So Paulo, Brazil, when military police stormed the penitentiary following a prison riot.The massacre, which left 111 prisoners dead, is considered by many people to be a major human rights violation. In a recorded phone conversation, Hunt told a friend she knew a bunch of corrupt officers, according to an FBI affidavit. In 2012, an inmate filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Lanesboro corrections officers cracked his skull with a baton and then destroyed a surveillance video that showed the assault. Wesley Turnerwas stabbed to death and taken to Anson Community Hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the N.C. Department of Public Safety. The state says the prison was on lockdown while they investigated the incident. "We've got to find a way to retain the people who work for us," Guice said. A lawyer for the killer said in a court hearing that he believes prison officials either sanctioned the September 2012 attack or looked the other way. He said the injuries he suffered in the 2011 attack have made it impossible for him to lift much weight above his head or work some prison jobs. The pay is low an average of the about $35,000 annually at maximum-security prisons and the work is dangerous and demanding. Alex Murdaugh sentenced to life in prison for murders of wife, son in June 2021, Get ready to change your clocks. Asheville:(828) 271-4661. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. NC inmates win payouts over prison violence - Burlington Times News Ortiz later told investigators his weapon was a plastic toilet bowl cleaner with a sharpened end. A North Carolina inmate was found guilty Monday of murdering four prison workers during a failed escape attempt two years ago. At Lanesboro, 45 miles southeast of Charlotte, it was common for 42 officers to watch about 1,200 prisoners on the night shift, according to Gregory McCoy, who worked there as a correctional officer from 2009 to 2016. Polkton Police Chief Matthew Norris said he recovered the one shank in Walls desk drawer soon after the 2012 fight. They pepper-spray and beat Vazquez with batons to stop him from stabbing Turner. He said hes haunted by Turners murder and has branded the letters of his best friends nickname into his right side. We encourage you to perform your own independent Bridges said she doesnt buy that explanation. Your morale goes down," she said. Drive down U.S. 74 toward the beach and you may not realize its there. Working at Lanesboro Correctional Institution: 17 Reviews - Indeed Have a question about Government Services? Ronald Covington, a former captain at Lanesboro, testified that Wall appeared to be close to a gang-affiliated inmate. At a pre-disciplinary conference, Wall told prison officials he was planning to put the shanks in a display case that would be used to train new staff members. The FBI investigated the case. He pleads with two other inmates to lend him a weapon. Parsons declined to talk with the Observer about that and other allegations. 227 West Trade St. Another prisoner also slips through the door. The officer said Wall asked her to go into his old office and retrieve a bag of shanks from the ceiling. Four correctional officers at a North Carolina prison were hospitalized Thursday after they were stabbed by several inmates, officials said. Since the beginning of 2016, more than 30 stabbings occurred. But Vazquez stabbed and killed Turner using another improvised weapon, a sharpened metal plate. The N.C. Department of Public Safety has declined the Observers requests for copies of the video, citing ongoing investigative reviews.. programs we write about. In 2017, The New York Times published an article captioned "Brazils Deadly Prison System". Assistant U.S. Attorney Dana Washington, of the U.S. Attorneys Office in Charlotte, is in charge of the prosecution. But some experts interviewed by the Observer said that's a possibility. Authorities say prison Sgt. The Carandiru massacre (Portuguese: Massacre do Carandiru, Portuguese:[msaki du kdiu]) occurred on Friday, 2 October 1992, in Carandiru Penitentiary in So Paulo, Brazil, when military police stormed the penitentiary following a prison riot. Officers found Dwyer dead at 10:15. One of those officers fell and hurt her knee when she went to Callahan's defense, Jernigan said. Bridges said that, in her opinion, Walls meeting with the Latino gang members was connected in some way with the subsequent fight. He said I could face an EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) complaint for making false accusations.. A search warrant affidavit filed earlier this year said that homemade knives were found in the ceiling above the office of Jeffery Wall, a former manager over the prison unit where Turner was killed. The inmate was identified as 35-year-old Wesley Turner in a news release from N.C . An officer in a control room opened the door for them. Later, an officer delivered other personal property to Wall, who had been waiting in front of the prison gatehouse. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Then he covers his mouth. The staffing shortages also put officers in danger, Smith said. And with Wall's signal after the fact, telling (Vazquez) essentially to be quiet, I don't know what other inference you can draw from it.. To cope with the shortages, many prisons have also paid hundreds of thousands each year for overtime. Learn how and when to remove this template message, "111 Killed When Police Storm Brazilian Prison During Inmate Riot", "Carandiru v. Brasil, Report, Report No. Inmates catch a mid-morning nap at Lanesboro Correctional Institution, in Polkton. We had about 7 officers overseeing about 30 inmates in a kitchen to make sure they followed the recipes.prepared and use the right utensils to serve the food. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. Cook is a leader of the Folk Nation, a rival gang, and he has heard rumors of escalating gang tensions. Editors note: This story is based on interviews with dozens of sources including inmates, investigators, lawyers and 19 current and former prison employees as well as court files, correspondence, criminal records and state prison documents. Officials say the men used a homemade shank as a weapon. Turner, 35, a convicted murderer nicknamed Thug Life, has served most of his 21-year prison sentence. If Cooks DNA had turned up on any of the shanks in Walls office, that could have helped tie them to the attack. Prison officials refused to allow reporters to interview Cook in prison, citing mental health concerns and a policy that does not allow media interviews with inmates in solitary confinement. Designed to hold 1,400 inmates, the prison has a staff of about 500. At 11:49 a.m., less than half an hour before the fatal fight begins, Wall walks into an office with an inmate. The defendant is innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law. The current capacity of Lanesboro Correctional Institution is 1,400 adult male inmates. Where, she wondered, were the shanks used to attack Cook and Turner? Many of the large maximum-security prisons such as Bertie and Lanesboro are located in rural areas, where recruiting can be difficult. The suits also contend that Wall facilitated attacks on two other inmates the same year Turner was killed. McCoy heard the officer curse and saw her struggling with an inmate. Most (of the prisons officers) are good, hard-working folks, said Underwood, the SBI supervisor. Then shelter shared desperate plea, What to Watch Friday: Dateline and 20/20 update Murdaugh murder trial coverage, Mail carrier cant believe his eyes after seeing NC lottery win. Two other inmates involved in the gang-related fight that day Julio Alberto Zelaya-Sorto and Joel Corto Ortiz also pleaded guilty to felonies and had up to four and five years, respectively, added to their prison sentences. Several days after the incident police still had not arrested a suspect or determined a motive for the murder.
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