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Lucasville prison riot Essay

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Around 3:00 pm on Sunday April 11, 1993 a riot started when prisoners returning from recreation time attacked prison guards in cell block L. The guards held the keys to the entire cell block and it did not take long for the prisoners to take full advantage of the keys. Four beaten guards were released within hours of the attack but 8 were retained. The riot was started for many reasons but the most obvious reason was TB testing on Muslims, they do not believe in using needles to take blood or for injections. Soon after the take over of the cell block Warren Tate shut off the power and water in the cell block. A “Death Squad” was formed in the beginning hours of the riot and black prisoners killed 5 white inmates. After this happened the …show more content…

A lot of what the public thinks about the riot is most likely false information. One reporter said that 172 inmate bodies were piled up inside the prison, when only 11 died.
The reporters did not help the negotiations at all. Inmates with battery powered TV’s were able to see sharpshooters position themselves on the roofs. Some negotiators believe the riot could have ended hours after it had started when prisoners tried to negotiate using bullhorns but could not because of helicopters hovering so low. The media wasn’t always a bad thing though one reporter was able to exchange a hostage to allow an inmate some air time.

When the riot started the guards went into small rooms called safe wells. The rooms were made out of 2 layers of block and had steel reinforced doors. The doors did their job but the prisoners started to beat at the block walls with weight lifting bars. Soon they busted a hole into the room and dragged the guards through the walls. The guards were assigned men to watch them; these men were ordered to kill the guards if the prison came under attack. A few of the guards were protected very well because they affiliated with the Aryan Brotherhood. These few lucky guards were even given weapons to defend themselves incase of a race riot within the prison.

During the riot

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