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California prison authorities put an end to an unsuccessful experiment to force belligerent prison gangs to restore peace after several attempts to integrate detainees that led to fighting and riots.
Authorities began to gradually allow inmates from different gangs in prison training courses together a year ago as part of the condemned peace effort. In the past, gang members were mostly kept in their cells for long periods of time without access to programs that could reduce their sentences.
However, in several state prisons, the end result has been fierce fighting. Some critics allege that they were orchestrated by correctional officers.
Prison officials "are sort of on the verge of realizing that this is not working," said Shaun Spillane, spokesman for the Inspector General of the Prison Department, at the Associated Agency. Press.
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In this archive photo from January 14, 2009, newly arrived inmates are escorted to the California State Prison, Corcoran. (AP Photo / Rich Pedroncelli, File)
Spillane denied that detainees were forced to fight on the order of correctional officers.
Most of the violent clashes involved the Fresno Bulldogs, a gang of more than 6,000 affiliated members in the Fresno city in the Central Valley. The name and symbol of the gang come from California State University Fresno, which uses a bulldog as a mascot.
The gang has participated in 32 fights with other prison gangs over the last year. Battles range from small fights to large-scale riots.
"All threat groups have problems with the Bulldogs, or vice versa, they are all Bulldogs compared to other threat groups," Spillane said.
According to the Office of the Inspector General, violence broke out 27 times among the 45 people in the same court by prison officials.
The latest fight took place on August 14 at the Soledad Correctional Training Center, south of San Francisco, where 200 inmates rioted. Eight were treated in out-patient hospitals and another 50 in prison.
A riot in a prison in July at Pleasant Valley State Prison involved 182 inmates. Three were treated for puncture wounds.
In this photo of January 14, 2009, inmates use the playground of Corcoran State Prison. (AP Photo / Rich Pedroncelli, File)
Past attempts to impose peace talks between the Bulldogs and other gangs have yielded the desired results. In one case, there was a fight between five Bulldogs and another gang after the end of the talks. They were initially not threatened but separated by a fence.
The fight broke out after being allowed to cross the fence and return to their cells, said prisoner rights lawyer Charles Carbone.
"The Bulldogs basically have an attacking mind," said Carbone.
Richard Edmond-Vargas, a prisoner rights advocate who had served a prison sentence, blamed correctional officials for creating situations where violence is inevitable.
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"They are actively putting people in a situation where they should be fighting and they know that prison culture wants us to fight," Edmond-Vargas said.
Instead of resuming the program, officials will "explore options to find a solution to this problem and shelter these people safely," said correctional officials.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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