News
BREAKING: Coxsackie inmate reportedly sets fire to cell; 6 guards injured
By Doron Tyler Antrim
Hudson-Catskill Newspapers
COXSACKIE — An inmate at Coxsackie Correctional Facility allegedly set fire to his cell early Sunday morning, triggering an incident that left six guards injured.
The inmate has been identified as 28-year-old Nathaniel Richardson of Erie County, who is serving a maximum 7-year sentence for burglary.
“When staff responded and opened the inmate’s cell door, the inmate attacked one correction officer by punching him in the face twice,” a press release stated. “Several officers and a sergeant then restrained the inmate — who was violently struggling and would not comply with the staff’s directions.”
The inmate was then taken to Albany Medical Center, where he allegedly became violent and hit another guard in the face with his elbow.
He had to be restrained while medical staff sedated him, the release said.
The extent of the guards’ injuries are not known at this time.
Media reports said the state Department of Correctional Services is investigating the incident and will take disciplinary action against Richardson.
“We are fighting for our lives every day that we go to work,” Michael Mazzella, Mid-Hudson Region vice president for the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, said in the release.
In an interview, Mazzella said attacks on officers are on the rise, adding, “It’s getting a little crazy.”
A report released earlier this year by The Correctional Association of New York, an advocacy group that visited the Coxsackie prison last year and surveyed almost a third of the prison population, found that 46 percent of respondents said confrontations between inmates and staff happen “very frequently.”
Only 16 percent, however, reported that they personally had been in a physical confrontation.
Data on such assaults between 2007 and 2009 placed Coxsackie in the top third of maximum-security prisons, the report found.
Data covering October 2009 to October 2010 revealed 22 such incidents, a rate comparable to that of the previous three years.
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To reach reporter Doron Tyler Antrim call 518-943-2100 ext. 3323 or email dantrim@thedailymail.net.
The inmate has been identified as 28-year-old Nathaniel Richardson of Erie County, who is serving a maximum 7-year sentence for burglary.
“When staff responded and opened the inmate’s cell door, the inmate attacked one correction officer by punching him in the face twice,” a press release stated. “Several officers and a sergeant then restrained the inmate — who was violently struggling and would not comply with the staff’s directions.”
The inmate was then taken to Albany Medical Center, where he allegedly became violent and hit another guard in the face with his elbow.
He had to be restrained while medical staff sedated him, the release said.
The extent of the guards’ injuries are not known at this time.
Media reports said the state Department of Correctional Services is investigating the incident and will take disciplinary action against Richardson.
“We are fighting for our lives every day that we go to work,” Michael Mazzella, Mid-Hudson Region vice president for the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, said in the release.
In an interview, Mazzella said attacks on officers are on the rise, adding, “It’s getting a little crazy.”
A report released earlier this year by The Correctional Association of New York, an advocacy group that visited the Coxsackie prison last year and surveyed almost a third of the prison population, found that 46 percent of respondents said confrontations between inmates and staff happen “very frequently.”
Only 16 percent, however, reported that they personally had been in a physical confrontation.
Data on such assaults between 2007 and 2009 placed Coxsackie in the top third of maximum-security prisons, the report found.
Data covering October 2009 to October 2010 revealed 22 such incidents, a rate comparable to that of the previous three years.
***
To reach reporter Doron Tyler Antrim call 518-943-2100 ext. 3323 or email dantrim@thedailymail.net.
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