A disturbance erupted at the Larimer County Jail on Sunday after an inmate threatened to harm himself or deputies, then cut himself with a piece of metal from a portable music player.
Jail officials said a deputy was conducting a routine status check of the cells in the high-risk inmate housing unit at about 11 a.m. when Steven McCranie, 27, attempted to spray an unknown liquid substance at the deputy as he walked past his cell door. McCranie then started to threaten to harm himself and the deputies.
When McCranie began making his threats, officials said the jail’s Special Emergency Response Team (SERT) was activated and successfully removed McCranie from his cell. Later, when being told of a new housing assignment, McCranie, who had previously been searched for weapons and contraband, removed the small piece of metal concealed in his mouth, and began to cut his arm.
SERT was activated again and McCranie was removed from his cell and placed in a restraint chair for his safety. While this was happening, inmates in the adjacent housing unit started banging on their cell doors and obstructing the windows to their cells so deputies could not see inside. Officials said one inmate, Derrick Gaworowski, 19, was inciting other inmates to join in the disturbance and would not comply with orders to stop inciting the other inmates.
Officials said when SERT attempted to remove Gaworowski from his cell he tried to fight them, with the deputies eventually having to use Pepperball and a Taser to gain control of him.
