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16 Correctional Officers Wounded in Calipatria Riot
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August 18, 2005 - According to accounts posted on the San Diego Union-Tribune website (www.signonsandiego.com), sixteen correctional officers were taken to outside hospitals. The initial attack began when a correctional officer attempted to search an inmate suspected of carrying a concealed weapon, said a spokesperson for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The correctional officer was slashed in the head, and a second officer was struck in the head from behind in the struggle. Lance Corcoran, Executive VP of CCPOA told reporters that officer was undergoing a CT scan for significant injuries, but that he was lucid. All sixteen officers are expected to be released from the hospital Thursday evening, including the two most seriously injured.
One inmate was fatally wounded and four others were taken to outside hospitals, according to prison spokesman Lt. Ray Madden, including a second inmate who was shot. No information was made available identifying the two inmates that were shot, nor of the condition of the second inmate. Another six inmates were taken to the prison infirmary and a total of 25 inmates were treated in what is being called a "major riot."
Lance Corcoran told the press that the inmates "attempted to take the unit over… they attempted to breach the control booth. They were throwing brooms and shoving sticks in." Corcoran quoted a sergeant who said that a tower guard "literally saved their lives today" after firing lethal rounds from a Mini-14.
The riot broke out shortly before 3 p.m. in a Level-4 exercise yard, according to the CDC&R spokesperson. The first officer was stabbed in the head and then kicked on the ground, while the second officer in the yard was struck from behind. The other officers suffered their injuries while re-taking control of the yard. The spokesperson stated that possibly 20 inmates were involved in the main struggle with the two yard-officers, then more incidents began on different parts of the yard.
Officers at Ironwood State Prison and other neighboring institutions were put on alert to aid in the riot at Calipatria, but the institution re-gained control of its yard and assistance was not needed. More information will be made available on this website as it is released.
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