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Fight at Arizona state prison leaves inmates hospitalized
Multiple inmates were hospitalized after a violent, gang-related fight at the Eyman prison complex in Florence, Arizona. The incident has sparked concerns among loved ones, despite claims that staffing levels are stable. FOX 10's Nicole Krasean here's from an inmate's wife, who is demanding more transparency.
FLORENCE, Ariz. - The director of Arizona’s state prison system is responding to questions surrounding a fight at a prison facility that landed multiple inmates in the hospital and one fighting for their life.
What we know:
A large and violent fight at the Eyman State Prison facility in Florence on April 26 left several inmates hospitalized and one in critical condition. The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) said the incident was gang-related.
Local perspective:
A wife of an inmate at the state prison is sharing her concerns over a lack of information from correctional staff and for her husband’s safety.
"It scares me that we didn’t hear much about it until we saw it on the news."
She said stress is part of having a loved one behind bars.
"He’s been incarcerated for four years," the wife said. "Things have been wild in there, things that he says he’s seen that he’s never seen before. Fights, they're always short-staffed, lockdowns."
Her husband is set to be released in July. During his time in custody, she said he has worked toward his GED and wants to better his life for her and their two daughters.
"He has worked towards his release and the last thing that the family has to fear is planning a funeral instead of preparing for a loved one to return home."
What they're saying:
The ADCRR released a statement on April 27, saying in part:
An inmate-on-inmate altercation involving multiple inmates at the Rynning Unit resulted in several inmates being evaluated and treated by health care staff onsite at the prison and several additional inmates being transported offsite to the hospital for care of non-life-threatening injuries.
ADCRR is confident that this targeted, gang-related incident does not represent a threat to the wider inmate population or ADCRR staff, nor is it reflective of the broader safety conditions inside Arizona’s prisons. ADCRR continues to prioritize the safety and well-being of its staff with onsite employee support resources available 24/7 at every prison complex.
Dig deeper:
Director Ryan Thornell told media on April 28 he was pleased with the staff response to the fight.
"It was a very isolated incident. It started out in the kitchen and then spilled into some other areas, which is why so many individuals ended up being involved," Thornell said. "The staff response was very quick, and I think it was because of their response, I know was because of their response, that staff did not get injured, and we were able to resolve it."
Thornell also commended staffing levels at the prisons, saying the department has a vacancy level of under 13% when it comes to correctional officers.
"We’ve done a tremendous amount of work over the last three and a half years to recruit and retain staff. Staffing levels had nothing to do with the incident this weekend."
What we don't know:
It is unclear how many inmates were involved in the fight.
What's next:
Meanwhile, this wife says she wants more transparency and communication, especially when violence breaks out.
"I had called this morning, I didn’t get answers about if he’s okay, was he there when it happened? We have the rights to know because that’s our loved one and I feel like they should be better with the inmates and protecting them, 'cause they’re humans like we are."
The Source: This information was gathered from the ADCRR and the wife of an inmate in the Eyman Arizona State Prison Complex.