Union, ISP officials react to Wednesday morning attack

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BY CHUCK VANDENBERG PCC EDITOR FORT MADISON - The president of the union representing staff at the Iowa State Penitentiary is calling on ISP and Iowa Department of Corrections officials to address safety issues after Wednesday morning's attack on a correctional officer. The attack is the second on an officer in the last five days and has resulted in lockdowns at the facility. ISP officials confirmed today the officer was attacked this morning with two homemade weapons by offender Keith Piper, who is serving a 45-year sentence out of Jasper County for being a habitual offender. The officer was taken to Fort Madison Community Hospital and then transferred to the University of Iowa IDOC officials released an updated statement Wednesday afternoon saying the C.O., whose name has not been released, is in stable condition at University of Iowa Hospitals.

"Iowa State Penitentiary continues to review and investigate this incident. Any incident of this nature is considered critical. Staff safety is the highest priority as the investigation into this matter continues. The department will continue to attend to the needs of the injured officers, of both today’s incident and the incident on Saturday, and commends all responding staff for their prompt and excellent response to protect fellow officers and prevent any further harm," according to a release from IDOC officials Wednesday.

AFSCME Council 61 President Danny Homan issued the following statement regarding the attack.

“This morning, a Correctional Officer at the Iowa State Penitentiary was stabbed five times by an inmate wielding two ten-inch shanks. The officer has been transferred to the University of Iowa Hospital, where he is receiving medical treatment. This incident comes on the heels of another assault against a Correctional Officer that took place on Saturday. In that incident, the inmate involved was escorted by the Correctional Officer who was stabbed this morning. Both assaults were carried out by inmates associated with white supremacist gangs. Homan said the AFSCME has been trying to bring attention to a lack of staffing at the local prison. “We have been sounding the alarm on the increased frequency of brutal assaults within our correctional facilities with absolutely zero change taking place. Our thoughts are with the two Correctional Officers who were the victims of the Department of Correction’s inaction. Thoughts only go so far; I hope their assaults will be taken seriously and acted upon with the urgency they deserve. We are demanding that the Department of Corrections meet with us to discuss this health and safety crisis before someone gets killed.”
AFSCME, correctional officer injured, fort madison, Iowa State Penitentiary, ISP, Pen City Current

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