Jacob Seibel
The Citizens’ Voice
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — State Correctional Institution at Dallas resumed normal operations Monday following an inmate attack on a correctional officer last week.
A lockdown at the State Correctional Institution at Dallas was lifted Saturday, 36 hours after Joel Perez, 40, a Lancaster County man serving a life sentence for first-degree murder, slashed the right side of correctional officer Francis Petroski’s face. The prison remained in a limited state of emergency Monday morning, according to prison spokeswoman Robin Lucas.
Officials with the correctional officers’ union on Monday expressed dissatisfaction with the duration of the lockdown, saying it should have been extended past the holiday to send a message to inmates. During lockdown, inmates remain locked in their cells. Their yard activities are taken away, their visits are cancelled and they are fed meals in their cells.
Lucas said the prison followed routine protocol and saw no reason to extend the lockdown.
“We have no indication that this incident was anything other than an unprovoked sneak attack by one inmate,” Lucas said in an email. “Our actions (with respect to the lockdown) are consistent with that.”
Robert Storm, vice president of the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association (PSCOA) said Perez should have been made an example for inmates.
“Anytime you have a major assault like that, you have to send a message to inmates,” he said.
Storm said a lockdown is done to make sure authorities can conduct a safe search to look for more weapons and determine whether the incident was isolated and not part of something larger that could led to a prison riot. There’s no timeline for how long a lockdown should last, but he said an investigation takes more than one day.
The prison remained in a state of emergency from Thursday night to Saturday morning, Lucas said. Visits at the facility resumed on Saturday, but Lucas said the prison remained in a limited state of emergency until 11 a.m. Monday.
“A limited state of emergency is controlled movements, feeding, showers and yard activities,” Lucas said. “Technically, all inmates were not locked in their cells, but their movements were more controlled than during a normal state of operation.”
Following the incident, Perez was transferred to the State Correctional Institution at Retreat in Hunlock Creek, court records show. Charges have not been filed in connection with the slashing, according to court records. State police could not be reached for comment on the investigation.
Perez used a makeshift weapon to stab Petroski, who was sitting behind a desk, according to a prison news release. The injured officer and another officer tried to restrain Perez, but Perez fled.
Three other officers in the corridor area saw Perez running and apprehended him.
The housing unit where the incident occurred is located across from the prison’s infirmary. When Petroski realized the situation was under control, he walked himself to the infirmary, the release said.
Local medical emergency crews transported Petroski to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center for treatment, the release said. Matthew Van Stone, spokesman for Geisinger Health System, confirmed Monday that Petroski has been released from the hospital.