Attorney: Vaughn inmates wanted officers gone, 'or else'

Inmates at Vaughn Correctional Center, who took control of part of the prison and killed a correctional officer earlier this month, composed a "hit list" with the names of 17 officers whom they wanted removed from corrections, “or else,” said Bruce Rogers, an attorney who represents the state correctional officers union.

“As part of their demands, there was a list of (correctional officers) … who needed to be separated from service – either retire, get fired, or else,” he said. “Obviously, we interpreted the 'or else' as a threat of bodily harm.”

Rogers said his information came from correctional officers who have spoken with him. For security purposes, he would not share the names of the officers listed on the document, he said.

The standoff at the prison near Smyrna started the morning of Feb. 1, when inmates took control of Building C and held officers, a prison therapist and, possibly, other prisoners hostage.

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In addition to the removal of the 17 officers, inmates demanded better education and an audience with Gov. John Carney.

A segment of the hostage negotiations was broadcast on a police radio frequency. In it, a prisoner negotiating with authorities could be heard repeatedly stressing inmates' demand to speak with the governor.

“We just want the world to know that this wasn’t for nothing ... or this is (going to be) a trial run,” the prisoner, who went by Sam, said.

The standoff lasted into the early hours of the next day when authorities crashed through a wall of Building C. There, they found the body of Lt. Steven Floyd Sr., who had been one of the captives. The others had been released.

All of the roughly 120 inmates who were in the building when the standoff commenced are considered to be suspects, investigators have said.

Carney on Tuesday said former Delaware Supreme Court Justice Henry duPont Ridgely and former Judge William L. Chapman Jr. will conduct a separate investigation into what prompted the takeover and what security measures must be taken at state prisons to prevent a similar incident.

A total of 17 state employees who worked at Delaware prisons, including Vaughn, have either quit, retired or announced retirement since Feb. 1. All but one are correctional officers, according to officials, who attributed those separations to the standoff.

It is unclear whether any of the officers who have left their jobs are also named on the inmate hit list, Rogers said.

Rogers also stated that officers have told him about multiple violent incidents at state prisons since the standoff. Seven officers have been assaulted by inmates, including four at Vaughn, he said.

"But to my knowledge, none of the officers who were on that list were involved in those incidents,” he said.

Numerous officers have told The News Journal since the standoff that it is against departmental policy to speak with members of the media.

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Department of Correction spokeswoman Jayme Gravell, in a statement, responded to questions about the potential assaults saying, "There are inmates who have repeatedly shown a pattern of dangerousness to others, including to our trained correctional officer staff."

"Use of force is sometimes warranted when there is an assessment that this technique will quickly de-escalate an immediately dangerous situation. Each 'use of force' episode is fully reviewed by administration to determine its appropriateness," she said.

Gravell declined to comment on the inmate hit list, instead referring questions to investigators at the Delaware State Police "as the purported hit list is part of an ongoing investigation."

When asked about the list, state police spokesman Sgt. Richard Bratz, in a one-sentence email, said, "This is an active and ongoing investigation."

While correctional officers being targeted for violence by inmates is troubling, it is not particularly unusual, Rogers said. In prisons, it can be an inherent risk, he said.

“Whoever is going to be the one who enforces the rules, whoever is going to be a stickler for detail, those are going to be the ones who nobody wants to have around," he said.

Contact Karl Baker at kbaker@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2329. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.