Inmates say they were forced to shower in front of picture-taking female guards, were denied the use of bathrooms and were taunted when they asked for water after a riot in the Crowley County Correctional Facility – even though they did not participate in the melee.
Former inmates Vance Adams, 28, and Oscar Barron, 37, talked about those conditions Wednesday in Denver. They are among the 86 inmates at the privately run Crowley County prison not involved in the July 2004 uprising who sued Corrections Corp. of America on Monday, claiming CCA guards used excessive force against them.
The pair described several episodes during the riot at the prison in Olney Springs in southeastern Colorado. They said they were dragged face first through water, forced to walk barefoot on broken glass and handcuffed so tightly their wrists bled.
Barron said the cuffs were so tight that men cried, begging that they be loosened. The guards responded: “Nope. Nope. You guys are going to pay for what you did. See how tough you are,” Barron recounted.
Adams and Barron, speaking at a Denver news conference, were joined by their lawyers, Bill Trine of Boulder and Adele Kimmel, from the Washington, D.C.-based Trial Lawyers for Criminal Justice.
CCA spokesman Steve Owen declined to comment except to say the company will “aggressively defend” itself.
The lawyers claimed that negligence by CCA, the nation’s largest private-prison operator, sparked the July 20, 2004, riot. And they allege that CCA’s guards subjected nonrioting prisoners to excessive force and inhumane treatment.
A state report criticized CCA for failing to act when an inmate disturbance was imminent, for ignoring orders to deploy tear gas once a riot broke out and for inadequate staffing to quell the melee, which involved several hundred prisoners.
The riot extensively damaged five living units, and 13 inmates received hospital treatment.
Alison Morgan, spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Corrections, said the department is not party to the suit since the prison is private. However, she said actions taken during the riot by prison guards were appropriate.
“We fully support the findings of our DOC inspector general that reasonable force was used to regain control of the facility once the inmates began to riot,” Morgan said.
Adams said he wasn’t allowed to shower until a week after the riot. When he did, “there were female guards walking around, and they (were) videotaping the whole thing,” Adams said.
Adams, raised by deaf parents, knew sign language and used it to communicate with his deaf cellmate. But Adams said that when a SWAT team entered their cell and began issuing orders, he had a dilemma.
“They told us to crawl back one at a time. I couldn’t translate because my hands were on my head,” Adams recounted. “My roommate noticed me crawling backwards, so he started to crawl backwards.”
Adams said the guards screamed at his cellmate to stop and cocked a shotgun.
Staff writer Howard Pankratz can be reached at 303-820-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
