McAlester Prison Riot (1973)
Fri Jul 27, 1973
Image: An aerial photograph of McAlester Prison burning during the riot. From the Oklahoma Collection, Oklahoma Historical Society [oklahomawatch.org]
On this day in 1973, prisoners at the underfunded and overcrowded Oklahoma State Prison in McAlester seized control of the facility, taking 21 hostages and demanding amnesty, press coverage, and meetings with lawyers from the ACLU. The McAlester Riot is considered by many to be one of the worst prison riots in U.S. history.
Conditions at the prison were terrible: more than 2,200 people were crowded into the prison (nearly ten times recommended by a post-riot investigation) and correctional officers were generally underpaid and poorly trained.
The crowding issue was made worse by Oklahoma governor David Hall's refusal to sign parole recommendations for drug offenders and individuals convicted of violent crimes.
On July 27th, 1973, inmates in the mess hall attacked several prison officials and took approximately twenty-one prison officials were held hostage. By that evening, the inmates had seized the hospital and set the prison on fire.
Prisoners released the hostages 24 hours after the uprising began, but retained control of the facility until August 4th. When the riot was over, three inmates had been killed and more than $20 million in damage had been done to twenty-four buildings. Despite the violence, conditions at the prison were not sufficiently improved to prevent more riots - another riot occurred at the Oklahoma State Prison in December 1985.
- Date: 1973-07-27
- Learn More: www.okhistory.org, oklahomawatch.org.
- Tags: #Riots.
- Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org