The Associated Press
Calif. federal prison officer fatally stabbed at Atwater
Merced, CA — Officials at the U.S. Penitentiary have resumed a lockdown following a spate of inmate violence in the past week.
Officials say more than 12 stabbings have taken place at the Atwater prison since the end of a previous three-month lockdown prompted by the murder of a guard there.
Officials say two inmates were hospitalized Tuesday and seven suffered puncture wounds in one of four fights in a week.
The lockdown instituted before the recent series of fights followed the stabbing death of 22-year-old correctional officer Jose Rivera. Two inmates face murder charges in that case that could result in the death penalty.
The correctional officers’ union has called for increased staffing to stem violence at the facility, 65 miles northwest of Fresno.