Warden Stabbed, 4 Others Hurt at Prison

An inmate stabbed his warden in the neck in the mess hall of a maximum-security prison in Dillwyn, Va., setting off a stampede of inmates who tried to take over the room that controls the prison’s doors. The melee at the Buckingham Correctional Center ended when a guard in the control room opened fire on the prisoners, injuring four of them, none seriously, said David Botkins, a Corrections Department spokesman. The warden, Eddie L. Pearson, 49, was hospitalized in stable condition after the 1:15 p.m. stabbing. When he was attacked, inmates began cheering and “chaos ensued” as one large group broke out of the recreation yard outside and rushed to the control room, Botkins said. An assistant warden signaled one of the guards in the control room to open fire on the inmates, Botkins said.