South Dakota Department of Corrections officials say correctional officers confiscated numerous items of contraband since locking down the state penitentiary and maximum security Jameson Annex on Sunday.
When the DOC announced the lockdown of its Sioux Falls prisons late Sunday night, the agency said it would not answer questions on why the lockdown began or how long it might last.
Searches since then turned up “handmade weapons, other items that can be fashioned into or used as weapons, and unauthorized electronics equipment,” according to a news release issued Thursday.
The lockdown was not prompted by an assault or fight, DOC stated, but was implemented as a “proactive security measure.”
The lockdown remains in place. The most recent count of inmates listed on the DOC website put the population of those two prisons at around 1,300.
Phone calls are being “managed” with service sometimes disrupted, according to prison officials. Inmates are getting food and medication in their cells, and have access to medical and mental health appointments or commissary.
“The safety of our staff is the number one priority,” Corrections Secretary Kellie Wasko said. “The lockdown will continue until the search of the entire complex is complete.”
Any suspected criminal activity uncovered during the lockdown will be referred to the state Division of Criminal Investigation, according to the DOC.
A piece of contraband confiscated during a lockdown at the South Dakota State Penitentiary. (courtesy SD Department of Corrections)
There were lockdowns earlier this year after two bouts of unrest in March. The incidents had inmates trying to destroy gates and other DOC property, as well as lighting fires in their cells, according to court documents. Shouts of “we want phones” could be heard from outside the penitentiary’s east hall. The incidents resulted in indictments for several inmates and two people outside prison facilities who are accused of collaborating with inmates on illegal activity.
The March incidents followed a decision by the DOC to temporarily shut down tablet-based communications for an “ongoing investigation.” No charges have been filed, and no explanation has been offered.
Mike Durfee State Prison in Springfield also saw unrest in July, with inmates injured in two separate flare-ups of inmate-on-inmate violence the department said injured six people
