OK -Prison fight likely gang-related

Prison fight likely gang-related

By BRYAN DEAN NewsOK.com
Published: 9/4/2010 2:25 AM
Last Modified: 9/4/2010 7:07 AM

HOMINY - Two prisoners were treated at a hospital Thursday evening after a fight between a large number of Hispanic and American Indian inmates at Connor Correctional Center in Hominy, prison officials said.

Corrections spokesman Jerry Massie said the fight started in several housing units within the prison at about 5:15 p.m.

"It was an altercation between Hispanic and Indian inmates, probably gang-related," Massie said. "Guards were able to get it under control. We think it was coordinated."

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ADDITIONAL STORY

Gangs force Oklahoma prison lockdown

By SEAN MURPHY Associated Press Writer
Published: 9/3/2010 3:35 PM
Last Modified: 9/3/2010 4:16 PM

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma prison officials said Friday they imposed lockdowns at a pair of state prisons after two inmates were stabbed and several others were injured in a series of gang attacks that appeared coordinated.

Two inmates stabbed Thursday were hospitalized briefly after fights erupted simultaneously in several housing units at Dick Connor Correctional Center in Hominy, said Jerry Massie, spokesman for the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. The inmates, whose names were not immediately released, did not suffer life-threatening wounds, and both returned to the facility Friday.

Correctional officers sprayed tear gas to break up the fights, which involved about 16 inmates, said Ron Coliver, a spokesman for the Hominy prison.

Coliver said the attacks involved Hispanic and Native American gangs at the prison, but investigators are still working to determine what sparked them.

"We don't know for sure," Coliver said. "We assume the beef is some kind of retaliation."

Another round of fights broke out Tuesday at the Mack Alford Correctional Center in Stringtown. Several inmates were injured but didn't require hospitalization, Massie said.

Both facilities remained on lockdown status Friday afternoon, which means inmates are confined to their cells, Massie said.

Homemade knives and weapons, including a padlock placed inside a sock, were used in the attacks, which investigators suspect were coordinated with cell phones smuggled into the prisons, he said.

The two gangs have been feuding for at least two years after a massive fight at the Oklahoma State Reformatory in Granite left two inmates dead and 13 others injured.

The dispute grew more heated last year after David Allen Tyner, a 28-year-old Native American, was charged with six counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of four people, including two pregnant women.

Two of victims in that case were Hispanic. Another was Brooke Phillips, a prostitute featured in the HBO reality series "Cathouse." All were found shot to death in November inside a burned home in Oklahoma City.

"Right after Tyner was arrested last year, the Hispanics attacked the Indians simultaneously," Coliver said, "presumably as a result of the Native American involved in the killing."

In prison, the violence spread beyond affiliated gang members to include other Native American and Hispanic inmates, said Lynn Powell, the director of Oklahoma Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants.

"This has been going on for almost two years now," said Powell, who meets regularly with current and former inmates and their families. "It just keeps flaring up and spreading, because now it's not limited to just gang members. If you're Native American or Hispanic, you're going to be a target."

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