Jurors in Corcoran Case Tour Prison

Jurors in the federal trial of eight Corcoran prison guards accused of setting up inmate fights now have firsthand knowledge of the maximum security lock-down.

The 12 jurors and three alternates on Thursday toured the Security Housing Unit at Corcoran State Prison where the guards are alleged to have pitted prisoners against one another in gladiator-style fights.

Jurors had repeatedly asked U.S. District Judge Anthony Ishii for the visit, saying an up-close look at the so-called “prison within a prison” would help them better understand the intricacies of the case.

Prison officials say they’ve never admitted an entire jury to the unit.

“The jury wanted to come see the facility because it’s been difficult for them to follow two months of testimony about the place without seeing it for themselves,” said Wayne Ordos, lawyer for accused guard Timothy Dickerson.

Prisoners from all over California’s massive penal system go to the security unit if they commit crimes while in prison for other offenses.

The place has a forbidding design of concrete walls, steel bars and bulletproof glass, all topped with concertina wire. Guards are never in the same room with a prisoner who hasn’t been handcuffed or shackled.

Except to go to the shower, the doctor, an administrative hearing or the exercise yard, a prisoner is never allowed out of a cell.

Jurors jotted down notes as they milled round the “control booth,” a glass-enclosed room with a clear line of sight into the 40 cells.

About 60 feet from the control booth, men with nicknames such as “Whisper,” “Turtle” and “Raccoon” lounged in tiny cells. Many stood naked at their cell doors, staring at the crowd in the booth. The jurors kept back from the glass walls.

The officers are accused of conspiring to violate prisoners’ civil rights by failing to protect them from brawls with other prisoners--brawls the guards allegedly knew were going to take place.

If convicted, Sgt. John Vaughn, Lt. Douglas Martin and officers Arvizu and Christopher Bethea face life terms in connection with a fight that led to the shooting death of inmate Preston Tate. Tate was shot by Bethea during the April 1994 fight.

Officers Raul Tavarez, Michael Gipson and Dickerson, and Sgt. Truman Jennings could face 10 years in connection with another 1994 fight.