Four inmates stabbed to death in altercation at downtown St. Louis prison

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Four inmates at a downtown St. Louis prison were stabbed during a brawl, the latest in several incidents of violence at the prison.

A security guard made a 911 call about a disturbance at the City Justice Center at around 1:20 p.m. on Wednesday, Monte Chambers, spokesman for the St. Louis Department of Public Safety, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The injured inmates were taken to a hospital. Their condition was not immediately disclosed.

The prison authorities are currently investigating the cause of the fight.

The prison has struggled to hire enough guards. Officials said earlier this year that fewer than 100 correctional officers were on duty, despite a budget calling for 226 positions.

Lawyers for the inmates have long complained about conditions in the prison. Between late 2020 and early 2021, it was the scene of three uprisings.

In February 2021, inmates set fires, caused flooding, smashed windows on the fourth floor, and threw chairs and other objects through the broken glass. A guard was also attacked.

In another uprising in April 2021, inmates again smashed windows and started a fire. A month later, Dale Glass, the prison's controversial warden, resigned.

And in 2023, inmates kidnapped a 70-year-old security guard for several hours before a police SWAT team intervened. The guard suffered minor injuries.

The Associated Press