California Pens :: January 2011

Valley State

January 11 – An inmate in an Ad Seg holding cell was being seen by a staff psychologist. The inmate became agitated, stood up and walked towards the front of the holding cell and spat towards the psychologist. An officer, who was standing nearby the area, noticed the inmate spitting at the psychologist and activated her personal alarm. Staff responded to the area without further incident.
    
January 3 – A Floor Officer notified a sergeant that a room window in a Housing Unit was broken. The sergeant responded to the area and upon questioning the inmates, two inmates admitted breaking the window.  
 

CIM

January 3 – A sergeant was placing handcuffs on an inmate when the inmate suddenly swung his elbow upward, striking the sergeant on the side of the face. Physical strength and holds were used to gain control of the combative inmate. The sergeant sustained redness to the face but remained on duty.

Kern Valley

January 20 – An officer was feeding morning chow at CTC when he went to collect a tray from an inmate. The inmate had a cup of liquid hidden under the tray and threw the liquid at the officer. The liquid did not make contact with the officer. It was later determined the substance was urine.

January 6 – An officer was instructing an inmate to cuff up, the inmate began yelling obscenities and told the officer to pepper spray him. The inmate then started to bang his head on the side of the holding cell. When the officer moved toward the inmate he lunged toward the officer, striking the officer’s shin with his leg.
 

MTA

December 18 – At California Medical Facility, three MTAs were escorting an inmate back to his cell from the day room. As the inmate exited the dayroom he lunged at one of the MTAs punching him in the face. The MTA grabbed the inmate with both arms and wrestled him to the floor. An alarm was activated and the MTA continued to hold the inmate on the floor until responding staff arrived.

Paroles

January 28 – A convicted sex offender parolee plead guilty to three felony counts of lewd acts on a child.
    
January 20 – Police arrested a parolee in the shooting death of an Antioch man. Police saw the parolee riding in a car and arrested him after a car and foot chase. The parolee was booked on parole violation and for allegedly possessing cocaine.

January 19 – A San Pablo officer stopped a vehicle for a traffic infraction. The officer began to talk with the driver, a woman, and took her driver’s license back to his car to relay the vehicle license number to dispatchers. The driver and one of two men in the car then jumped out. The officer began to chase them and saw the man throw a backpack behind a gas station. The officer then saw the man reach for his waistband and ordered him to stop. When the man didn’t comply, the officer used his Taser. The man vaulted a hedge and fell down. The officer struggled with him and felt a handgun in the man’s waistband. The man broke free, stood up and began pointing the gun at the officer. The officer pushed the man’s gun away while simultaneously firing multiple shots. The man, later identified as a parolee with an extensive criminal history, died at the scene.

January 17 – Salinas police responded to reports of a burglary in progress. When officers arrived at the scene, they found a slider door open and a man fleeing while carrying a bag. The man was later identified as a parolee with known gang associations and was taken into custody after a brief foot pursuit.

January 13 – A sheriff’s deputy and his training officer were on patrol in East Los Angeles when they saw a man acting suspiciously in a parked car. When they made contact with him, a struggle ensued. The man shot the sheriff’s deputy in the face, prompting the training deputy to return fire. The sheriff’s deputy was hospitalized in critical condition and the man was pronounced dead at a medical center. The man was later identified as a parolee convicted of being a felon in possession of a gun and shooting into an inhabited dwelling. After the shooting, investigators discovered the parolee was in possession of two handguns.

January 11 – Eureka police conducted a traffic stop and arrested the driver on felony warrant and the passenger who was a parolee for possessing a loaded Glock handgun. The parolee had been out of prison for about one week and failed to report to his parole officer.

Also on January 11 – A parolee barricaded himself in a residence in the city of Sunland when officers tried to serve a search warrant. The parolee eventually surrendered to a SWAT team and was taken into custody.

January 5 –The parolee who was wanted for beating, choking and threatening to stab his girlfriend during an argument on November 27th was arrested by Barstow police after a one and a half hour standoff. The wanted parolee was in possession of a compound bow and arrow at the time of his arrest.

January 3 – Police arrested a San Bernardino parolee-at-large who ran from a sobriety checkpoint, barricaded himself in a house and claimed he had a hostage.

January 1 – An Oceanside parolee is suspected of fatally shooting his wife but leaving their children unharmed. A two-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl were inside the victim’s apartment at the time of the killing.
 

Pelican Bay

January 28 – An inmate attempted to strike an officer in the face. Physical force was used to stop the inmate’s actions. The inmate was restrained and secured in handcuffs. An officer sustained pain to the knee.
    
January 24 – An inmate was in the rotunda being escorted out of the unit when he became resistive towards escorting staff. The inmate began twisting his body in an attempt to break free of the escort. Staff used physical force to place the inmate in a prone position. A sergeant sustained a scratch on the forearm and pain in the right thumb.

Also on January 24 – Officers were processing inmates for the morning group, when an inmate made the following threatening statement to an officer, “I’ll stab an officer, I’m not afraid of no officer.”  

Also on January 24 – An inmate became disruptive and began kicking his cell door. Staff used pepper spray to stop the inmate’s actions, with negative results. The inmate then battered staff and a second burst of pepper spray was required to stop the inmate.

January 18 – Officers were at the front of a cell to conduct a search, when the inmates refused to submit to handcuffs. One of the inmates threw an ‘ear bud’ with the wires balled up, through the open cuff port striking an officer in the chest. The inmate then began wrapping his hand with a wet towel and threatened to kill anyone who entered the cell. Another officer ordered the second inmate who was at the rear of the cell not to attempt to cover himself with the blanket he was holding. The second inmate ignored staff orders so the officer used pepper spray striking the blanket. The other inmate charged the open cuff port and the officer discharged another burst of pepper spray striking the inmate in the face. The inmate then grabbed the television in the cell raising it above his head. The officer ordered the inmate to stop with negative results. The officer then used pepper spray striking the inmate in the face. The inmate threw the television against the base of the cell door, breaking the television into countless pieces. The inmates then submitted to handcuffs. As the inmates were escorted from the cell, one of the inmates began threatening staff saying when he gets a chance he will kill one of the staff members. No staff were injured as a result of this incident.

January 15 – An inmate committed an act of sexual misconduct by indecently exposing himself while masturbating to an officer as she was conducting count.

Also on January 15 – As officers were distributing meals to the inmate population, they approached a cell and observed an inmate in a seated position on the floor, leaning against the lower bunk. The inmate was non-responsive at the time. An officer instructed the other occupant of the cell to turn on the cell light. The inmate turned the light on, revealing massive injuries to the inmate. The officer instructed the Control Officer to activate the unit alarm and request assistance. Both officers placed the inmate in handcuffs and escorted him to a holding cell. Responding staff entered the cell and rendered medical aid to the inmate, who had massive trauma to his head and torso. A Code 3 ambulance was requested and the inmate was taken to an outside hospital.

January 11 – Two inmates rushed officers while being released into the exercise yard. Staff in the immediate area responded and stopped the attack using physical force and batons. Two inmate-manufactured weapons were discovered. Three officers were taken to a local hospital for treatment of lacerations and puncture wounds.

Also on January 11 – While an officer was providing coverage of staff members serving the morning meal, the officer noticed a cell light on and the window covering removed. The officer then observed the inmate standing on his toilet with his boxer shorts pulled down to his knees, masturbating while staring at her. As floor staff approached the inmate’s cell, he stepped off the toilet and pulled his boxer shorts back up.

Also on January 11 – During a cell search two inmate-manufactured weapons were discovered. Both inmates were removed from the cell and placed into holding cells then rehoused in contraband Watch Cells. One weapon was approximately a one-eighth inch round piece of metal four  inches long and the second weapon was a flat piece of metal approximately one and a half  inches wide and seven inches in length, with one end tapered to a sharpened end.

January 8 – An inmate committed an act of sexual misconduct by exposing himself while masturbating to an officer as she was conducting count.

January 6 – An officer was providing coverage from the Building Control Booth for staff to conduct the evening medication pass. The officer observed that a yellow window covering on a solely occupied cell had slipped down, exposing approximately 11 inches of the window. The officer observed the inmate positioning himself in a manner to be seen through the window. The inmate was masturbating and exposing his penis. The officer notified floor staff, who responded to the cell and covered the rest of the window.

Also on January 6 – An inmate refused to take his court ordered Keyhea medication. An extraction team was formed and chemical agents were used to remove the inmate from the cell.
 

R.J. Donovan

January 27 – An inmate was exiting central R&R during load out and immediately took an aggressive stance, attempting to strike several officers. The inmate was immediately sprayed with pepper spray and continued to refuse verbal orders to stop. The inmate was taken to the ground and placed in handcuffs without further incident. Multiple officers were exposed to pepper spray. One officer sustained a four-inch laceration to the bone on the forearm and was taken to an outside hospital for treatment.

January 18 – An EOP inmate exited his cell for medication with self inflicted cuts to his neck and wrist. As staff attempted to assist the inmate he became combative and charged the officers. The inmate had a razor in his hand and attempted to cut staff. The inmate was placed in restraints and transported to medical. One officer received several cuts to his hand and ear along with blood exposure. Several other officers were also exposed to the inmate’s blood.

Also on January 18 – As an EOP inmate exited his cell to attend a medical appointment he approached an officer and immediately struck him on the left side of the face with a closed fist. After striking the officer, the inmate laid down on the ground in a prone position. The inmate was then placed in handcuffs without incident. The officer sustained swelling and an abrasion to the cheek and jaw area.

January 14 – A riot broke out between three new arrival bulldogs and approximately 15 Southern Hispanic inmates. Staff used pepper spray to stop the attack.