Siege at W.Va. Prison Ends as Last Hostages Go Free

Inmates who seized control of the West Virginia Penitentiary and killed three prisoners in a two-day uprising released their last hostages today, and guards moved in to restore state control.

All the hostages were freed by 12:45 p.m., authorities said.

Officials had planned to remove the hostages from the prison yard by ambulance, but inmates insisted that the captives leave on foot through the penitentiary’s south gate.

The men, several missing shoes, walked out one by one. They looked tired but said they were unharmed. The last man out, food service worker Bill Henderson, replied, “Fantastic,” when reporters asked him how he felt.

The inmates, who had initially seized 16 hostages, signed a settlement with state officials Thursday agreeing to free their captives and return control of the prison to the state. But after signing the agreement and releasing six of the hostages, they went on a rampage through the prison, “destroying everything in sight,” officials said.

The body of the third inmate killed by fellow prisoners was removed from the prison this morning.

The settlement called for the last seven hostages to be released today and state control of the 120-year-old, fortress-like prison to be restored after nearly two days of rioting.

In return, inmates were promised there would be no reprisals for participating in the rioting. They also were promised a meeting with Gov. Arch Moore to discuss grievances, officials said.

Moore said today there would be no amnesty for those who committed crimes, including the inmate killings. “Everything that has happened will be fully investigated and where punishment is appropriate it will be applied,” he said.