Current:Home > ScamsMinnesota prison on lockdown after about 100 inmates refused to return to cells amid heat wave -Elevate Money Guide
Minnesota prison on lockdown after about 100 inmates refused to return to cells amid heat wave
View
Date:2025-04-19 04:58:34
STILLWATER, Minn. — A Minnesota prison has been placed on emergency lockdown after about 100 inmates in one housing unit facing dangerously high temperatures would not return to their cells Sunday in what one former inmate there called an act of “self-preservation.”
The situation is “currently stable” and the reason inmates “are refusing to return to their cells remains unclear,” a Department of Corrections spokesperson said.
But advocates positioned outside of the Stillwater prison, some of whom have family members inside, said inmates are fed up from the excessive heat, limited access to showers and ice, and unclean drinking water.
Inmates have been on intermittent lockdowns since Friday because of staffing issues, they said, meaning they are kept in their cells, which reportedly don’t have air conditioning. The prison is in Bayport about 25 miles east of Minneapolis, which was under an afternoon heat advisory for temperatures approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
“My organization got calls from inmates who are actually inside” starting at 6:30 a.m., said Marvina Haynes of Minnesota Wrongfully Convicted Judicial Reform, whose brother is an inmate at Stillwater.
“This morning, they decided that they weren’t going to lock into their cells,” said David Boehnke of Twin Cities Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee, adding there have been lockdowns on and off for the past two months.
HEAT WAVES ARE MAKING IT 'TORTURE':Most US states don't have universal air conditioning in prisons.
The executive director of the union representing Stillwater’s correctional officers, Bart Andersen, said in a statement that the incident is “endemic and highlights the truth behind the operations of the MN Department of Corrections with chronic understaffing.”
Andersen said such conditions upset inmates because of restrictions on program and recreation time “when there are not enough security staff to protect the facility.”
Haynes, Boehnke and Cathy Stroud Caldwell said the inmate action was an impromptu response to unsafe conditions.
“They didn’t have time to organize and plan,” Haynes said. “It was just … we’re not going back to that hot cell with no drinking water and not being able to shower.”
Intense heat waves across the country have led to amplified concern for prison populations, especially those in poorly ventilated or air conditioned facilities.
Two officers at the Stillwater correctional facility were reported to be safe in a secure control area and in contact with facility staff. No injuries had been reported.
The state Department of Corrections said members of a crisis negotiation team have been activated and the Special Operations Response Team was also deployed “out of an abundance of caution.”
In total, about 1,200 inmates are at the facility just southeast of Stillwater in Bayport, according to department records. It was built in 1914.
Kevin Reese, founder of a criminal justice organization, Until We Are All Free, described Stillwater as a “pizza oven” in the summers. He was incarcerated there during the summers from 2006 through 2009.
“It is a 100 year old building with no air conditioning, no central air,” Reese said. “The walls actually sweat.”
veryGood! (254)
Related
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Ayesha Curry Details Close Friendship With Great Mom Lindsay Lohan
- Breaking Down Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter: Grammys, Critics and a Nod to Becky
- Beyoncé's 'Cowboy Carter' is a little bit country and a whole lot more: Review
- Who's hosting 'Saturday Night Live' tonight? Musical guest, how to watch Dec. 14 episode
- Poison reports for dogs surge 200% at Easter: What to know to keep dogs, other pets safe
- Ayesha Curry Details Close Friendship With Great Mom Lindsay Lohan
- Volunteers uncover fate of thousands of Lost Alaskans sent to Oregon mental hospital a century ago
- Sarah J. Maas books explained: How to read 'ACOTAR,' 'Throne of Glass' in order.
- 2nd man pleads not guilty to Massachusetts shooting deaths of woman and her 11-year-old daughter
Ranking
- Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
- Tracy Morgan clarifies his comments on Ozempic weight gain, says he takes it 'every Thursday'
- Men’s March Madness live updates: Sweet 16 predictions, NCAA bracket update, how to watch
- Arkansas, local officials mark anniversary of tornadoes that killed four and destroyed homes
- Former Syrian official arrested in California who oversaw prison charged with torture
- Can 'villain' Colorado Buffaloes overcome Caitlin Clark, Iowa (and the refs)?
- Caitlin Clark would 'pay' to see Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo, USC's JuJu Watkins play ball
- Love Lives of Selling Sunset: Where Chelsea Lazkani, Christine Quinn & More Stand
Recommendation
Gen. Mark Milley's security detail and security clearance revoked, Pentagon says
Midwest Maple Syrup Producers Adapt to Record Warm Winter, Uncertainty as Climate Changes
Illinois’ Elite Eight run led by Terrence Shannon Jr., who faces rape charge, isn’t talking to media
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Mixed Nuts
Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
Diddy's houses were raided by law enforcement: What does this mean for the music mogul?
Duke knocks off No. 1 seed Houston to set up all-ACC Elite Eight in South Region
Breaking Down Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter: Grammys, Critics and a Nod to Becky