Five men assaulted in St. Clair prison this week
At least five people were assaulted between Monday and Tuesday in St. Clair Correctional Facility, the Alabama Department of Corrections confirmed. None of the men died, but two had to be transported to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Four of the assaults involved the use of a weapon, ADOC said.
On Monday, Bienemy Luther, 31, was assaulted by another incarcerated person. After he was taken to the prison infirmary, he was taken to an area hospital for further treatment.
On Tuesday, Martin Adams, Montrell Towns and Ladarius Lucas were involved in an altercation with weapons. Adams, 35, and Towns, 29, were treated at the facility, while Lucas, 39, was taken to an area hospital.
Also on Tuesday, Shedrick Williams III, 46, was assaulted with weapons by several other incarcerated men. His injuries were treated at the prison.
There were 102 assaults reported at St. Clair during the fiscal year ending in September, the third most of any close security prison in Alabama. According to the most current statistics, St. Clair Correctional Facility is filled to 111% of its designed capacity.
Alabama remains in a legal battle with the U.S. Department of Justice over its prison system, which the DOJ deemed unconstitutional in 2020 after a multi-year investigation. "Alabama fails to provide adequate protection from prisoner-on-prisoner violence and prisoner-on-prisoner sexual abuse, fails to provide safe and sanitary conditions, and subjects prisoners to excessive force at the hands of prison staff," the DOJ wrote.
In response to poor conditions in the prison and little hope for release through parole, incarcerated individuals led a multi-week labor strike inside the prisons from late September to mid-October, demanding changes to the state's sentencing laws and parole process.
The strike garnered national attention before ending Oct. 15.
Evan Mealins is the justice reporter for the Montgomery Advertiser. Contact him at emealins@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanMealins.
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This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Five men assaulted in St. Clair prison this week; two hospitalized
