Associated Press
PINCKNEYVILLE, Ill. — A southern Illinois prison is on lockdown after a weekend altercation left four guards with slight injuries.
The Illinois Department of Corrections says the fracas at the medium-security Pinckneyville Correctional Center for men began about 10 a.m. Sunday when a guard asked an unruly inmate to step out of the meal line.
That’s when another inmate apparently punched the guard. After three other correctional officers responded, a third inmate joined in the altercation before guards used pepper spray to subdue the prisoners involved.
Three of the guards were treated at a hospital, including one officer who sustained a broken nose. The fourth guard and the accused inmates were treated at the prison’s health-care unit.
Corrections officials say charges will be pursued.
The lockdown restricts inmate movement and bars visitation.