Four Hazelton prison workers injured; staff works without pay during government shutdown

HAZELTON — The high-security U.S. Penitentiary at Hazelton is on lockdown Friday after an incident this morning in which an inmate assaulted multiple staff.

According to Richard Heldreth, president of local 420 of the American Federation of Government Employees, four staff members received minor injuries during the incident.

“The violent and understaffed conditions at the FCC have not improved in the past few months. While the [Bureau of Prisons] has hired a handful of officers in the past two months, this does not even begin to make a dent in the situation, especially when you factor in the staff that we have lost during the same time frame,” Heldreth said.

Last year three inmates were killed at the prison, including infamous gangster James “Whitey” Bulger. Several correctional officers were injured in other incidents of inmate violence. Workers staged an informational picket to call attention to staff cutbacks at the federal facilities, and a federal review team visited Hazelton in November.

Read more: https://www.dominionpost.com/2019/01/04/four-hazelton-prison-workers-injured-staff-works-without-pay-during-government-shutdown/