Investigation shows rise in assaults on prison guards
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – A new investigation shows a spike in the number of reports of inmates in Tennessee’s prison system assaulting guards.
The Tennessean is reporting that prisoners have assaulted correctional officers with weapons 70 times since Jan. 11. There were an additional 49 assaults during that same period that did not involve a weapon.
The paper found that the 119 assaults against prison staff so far this year put the state Department of Correction on pace to more than double the reported assaults last year.
The increase comes after the state changed the way it defined assaults – a move that came after correctional officers and some state lawmakers accused officials of low-balling the actual number of assaults in the prison system.
