JACKSON, Miss. — As many as 300 inmates, some of them armed with makeshift weapons such as broomsticks, rioted at a privately run prison for illegal immigrants, beating a guard to death and injuring 19 people, a sheriff said Monday.
More than two dozen officers were held hostage at some point during the hours-long incident Sunday, including a group of 15 who had to be rescued by special-response teams, said Adams County Sheriff Chuck Mayfield.
A gang fight set off the violence, the sheriff said. The guard was killed on the roof of one of the prison buildings.
Sixteen prison employees were treated for injuries and released from a hospital. Three inmates were hurt, officials said.
The Adams County Correctional Facility holds nearly 2,500 illegal immigrants, with most serving time for coming back to the United States after being deported, said Emilee Beach, a prison spokeswoman. Some of the inmates also have been convicted of other crimes.
The slain guard was identified as Catlin Carithers, who joined Corrections Corp. of America in 2009 and was a senior correctional officer, the Nashville, Tenn.-based company said on its website. CCA is one of the largest private prison companies in the country.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether the gang fight started between members of the same gang or rival groups, but the situation escalated quickly and spread throughout the prison, Mayfield said.
Frank Smith, who runs the online prison- watchdog group Private Corrections Working Group, said riots usually are caused by poor conditions, but the sheriff said that wasn’t the case.
The prison in southwest Mississippi remained on lockdown Monday. Officials were assessing damage.
Federal Bureau of Prisons spokesman Chris Burke said the facility holds low-security inmates.
CCA officials have not responded to questions about what set off the uprising.
