Violence inside a central Georgia prison left three inmates dead and at least a dozen others injured Sunday, after what local authorities described as a "possible riot." Washington County Sheriff Joel Cochran said a series of major fights broke out among prisoners at Washington State Prison early Sunday afternoon. Two inmates were confirmed dead before 5pm, with a third later pronounced dead at a hospital, per WMAZ. About 13 other inmates were transported to medical facilities. One correctional officer may also have been hurt, Cochran said, though details on that injury were not immediately clear.
The Human and Civil Rights Coalition of Georgia said "offenders overpowered a guard and burst into visitation," some with "blood all over them," per the Independent. It shared footage of inmates running in an outdoor corridor and three police helicopters hovering over the area, the Independent reports. By late afternoon, state corrections officials told the sheriff that the situation inside the facility was under control and that all inmates had been counted. "It's not uncommon for these things to happen at correctional facilities; however, I think it has been quite some time since we've had to come to an incident this large," Cochran said.
The response included the Washington County Sheriff's Office, the county coroner, the Georgia State Patrol, Davisboro Police, and the Johnson County Sheriff's Office, while the Georgia Department of Corrections managed operations inside the prison. The Department of Corrections has not yet publicly commented on what sparked the violence or the conditions inside the facility. The names of the dead and injured have not been released. Washington State Prison is a medium-security prison about 50 miles southeast of Augusta.
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