Fights Spur Lock-Down of Male Inmates in All County Jails

Male prisoners in all county jails were locked in their cells Tuesday after 109 inmates and a sheriff’s deputy were injured late Monday and Tuesday in the latest of a years-long series of racial brawls at the Pitchess jail, authorities said.

Authorities “got information that the fighting was planned,” said Deputy Carrie Stuart, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. “They were afraid other facilities would do the same thing.”

The Pitchess Detention Center, where prisoners live in dorm-style barracks, has been wracked by scores of fights between black and Latino prisoners, sometimes a number of brawls a day, for several years. On any given day, thousands of prisoners are in the center, awaiting trials or transfers to state prisons.

The fighting Monday also included a clash between blacks and Asians.

In at least one previous instance, deputies said they later learned that the fighting broke out in coordinated, planned attacks throughout the jail.

An investigation into what triggered the brawls was still underway, but authorities locked down the facilities because they feared the violence could spread as prisoners were thrown together while being transported to various jails or to the courts, Stuart said.

She added that the Sheriff’s Department normally does not lock up all prisoners after every brawl.

“It’s just a means of precaution,” she said.

The lock-down at Pitchess, the Men’s Central Jail downtown and other facilities would remain in effect until authorities investigated Monday night’s events and were sure there was no further danger, Stuart said.

Monday night’s brawls involved up to 439 prisoners--20 of whom were taken to the jail ward at Los Angeles County--USC Medical Center for treatment, Stuart said. The injuries included broken bones and puncture wounds.

She said the rest were treated at the jail clinic for minor injuries.

The injured deputy was only slightly hurt when he fell as he was responding to one of the fights but required no treatment, Stuart said.

Prisoners were still being interviewed late Tuesday to determine the cause of the fights. “We’re still in the midst of dealing with some of the issues,” Sheriff’s Capt. Jeff Spring said.

The fights occurred in several dorms at the east and north county facilities and also spread to other parts of the jail.

The first fight began about 11:15 p.m. and lasted about 10 minutes, according to Benita Nichol, a spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Department

She said a second fight began at about 11:40 p.m. and at least half of the 98 inmates in that incident appeared to fighting along racial lines, this time blacks against Asians.

That fight only lasted about a minute and was broken up by officers using only verbal commands.

The third fight began at about 11:55 p.m. between blacks and Latinos and again lasted about 10 minutes, she said.

Stuart said Emergency Response Teams were called in from Pitchess Detention Center and the Men’s Central Jail.

In all, the deputies used six stingball grenades--which hurl shrapnel of hard rubber pellets meant to inflict pain without serious injury--two sting rounds and pepper spray to stop the fighting, authorities said.

Stuart said deputies recovered several jail-made knives commonly referred to as “shanks.”

The Monday night fighting continued Tuesday, with three more battles between African Americans and Latinos.

Stuart said that at about 1:15 p.m., about 1,080 inmates fought at the jail’s east facility for about 10 minutes.

At about 2:20 p.m., another 330 inmates at the north county facility fought for about five minutes.

A third fight occurred about 3:40 p.m., when 125 inmates fought for about 10 minutes.