Riot breaks out at Indiana prison

NEW CASTLE, Ind. --About 500 inmates staged a two-hour riot at a medium-security men's prison Tuesday, injuring two staff members and setting fires in a courtyard before officials used tear gas to restore order.

Authorities were investigating whether the riot at the New Castle Correctional Facility started because prisoners newly arrived from Arizona were upset about their treatment.

Two staff members and seven inmates suffered minor injuries. The riot involved inmates from both states, and none escaped, officials said.

Indiana Department of Correction spokeswoman Java Ahmed said more than one cell house was involved in the disturbance at the prison, about 43 miles east of Indianapolis.

Prison guard Larry Savage said he, two guards and three maintenance workers barricaded themselves in a room as dozens of inmates tried to break in before a prison response team arrived about 15 minutes later.

"They were wrapped up in masks, with sticks, knives, shanks," Savage said of the inmates. "They were just flexing their muscles and they wanted to show that they could take the prison over at any time, and that's what they did."

Correction Commissioner J. David Donahue said the riot began after a group of inmates from Arizona took off their shirts in the prison's recreation area to show staff they wouldn't comply with orders. They had been told to keep the shirts on.

Donahue said he has delayed the transfer of another 600 inmates from Arizona until authorities can reassess the condition of the prison.

"This system is different than what they are accustomed to," Donahue said.

Some of the newly arrived inmates had complained about a lack of recreation and other programs, said Trina Randall, a spokeswoman for GEO Group Inc., the Boca Raton, Fla.-based company that manages the prison.

Corrections officials sent emergency squads and county and state police to the prison. New Castle Mayor Tom Nipp said the entire city police force was also activated.

Helicopter pictures showed officers in riot gear standing outside the prison fence and at least two fires burning in the courtyard.

Authorities secured the prison perimeter and confirmed that no inmates escaped, although some were still out of their cells, Indiana State Police Sgt. Rod Russell said. All staff members were accounted for.

Authorities did not release the conditions of the two injured staff members, though Donahue said neither suffered serious injuries.

The injured staff members suffered cuts and scrapes, while the inmates' injuries involved tear gas exposure and minor cuts. All seven inmates were treated at the prison, said Trina Randall, spokeswoman for GEO Group Inc., a Florida company that contracted last year with the state to manage the prison.

The prison, built in 2002, can house about 2,200 inmates. It currently has about 1,000 prisoners from Indiana and 630 from Arizona.

In March, Arizona and Indiana reached an agreement on housing up to 1,260 Arizona inmates.

Arizona Department of Corrections spokeswoman Katie Decker said at least some of the transferred inmates had complained about being moved, a step her agency said was necessary because of the state's shortage of prison space.

"They're obviously resentful because they had to leave the state," she said, adding that it was too early to say whether the transfers played any role in the riot.

Decker said the inmates sent to New Castle were "carefully picked" before being transferred and could have "no predisposition to violence." The inmates arrived about six weeks ago, officials said.

The prison housed an average daily population of 450 in 2005, according to the DOC web site. It also has a psychiatric facility that treats inmates who are bused in from other prisons.

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Associated Press writers Bob Christie in Phoenix and Ken Kusmer in Indianapolis contributed to this report.