by Gregory Hoyt
VISTA, CA – The San Diego Sheriff’s Department revealed that one of their deputies was the victim of a brutal attack at the hands of jail inmates in February, with the deputy having suffered numerous injuries due to strikes to the head and body.
Inmates attack deputy at Vista jail https://t.co/YzdyCMg1Bl by @FOX5Brittney @fox5sandiego
— San Diego Deputy DAs (@SanDiegoDDAs) February 15, 2021
Thankfully, the deputy survived the ordeal – but the swelling and contusions the deputy suffered help illustrate the dangers associated with working inside of jails.
The incident was said to have happened at approximately 2:00 p.m. on February 13th while Deputy Michael Cascioppo was escorting a nurse through the Vista Detention Facility while the nurse was making her respective rounds.
In the release provided by the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, Deputy Cascioppo was essentially lured to a particular cell by an inmate under false pretenses in order for the attack to be launched:
“When Deputy Cascioppo and the nurse were walking by a particular cell, one of the two inmates inside got the attention of the deputy. The inmate asked if the deputy could pass a food tray to the inmates in the cell next door.”
The two inmates were said to have thrown several punches and kicks to the deputy’s head and torso – and even dragged the deputy into the cell to continue the attack.
Deputy Cascioppo was said to have tried to defend himself, but the attack wasn’t stopped until additional deputies arrived to assist with the situation. Surprisingly, Deputy Cascioppo was able to walk out of the cell himself.
He was later treated at a nearby hospital and was released later in the evening on the day of the attack.
The sheriff’s department noted that despite Deputy Cascioppo having been the victim of said attack, he apparently expressed concerns after his hospital relief to ensure that the nurse wasn’t hurt during the incident:
“He wanted to make certain the nurse had not been injured. The nurse was able to flee and was not assaulted.”
Detectives with the Sheriff’s Detentions Investigation Unit are said to be investigating the incident, but authorities have not released the identities of the two inmates who are believed to be the attackers.
This is a developing story.
Please follow Law Enforcement Today as we gather further information as the investigation progresses.
In other matters related to inmates behaving badly, a jail in Missouri wound up hosting a riot enacted by inmates among one of the housing units.
Images of busted windows and fires set the stage during the incident from earlier in February – which we at Law Enforcement Today recently reported on.
Here’s that previous report.
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ST. LOUIS, MO — On Saturday February 6th, inmates at the City Justice Center in downtown St. Louis started a riot, lighting fires and smashing windows around 2:30 a.m.
The chaos, which involved inmates on the fourth floor, allegedly began following an altercation between an inmate and a guard. The guard was then jumped by other inmates, authorities reported.
1 guard injured, fires set and things thrown from windows during uprising at St. Louis City Justice Center https://t.co/ayQXOUB230
— 11Alive News (@11AliveNews) February 6, 2021
The director of the city’s Department of Public Safety, Jimmie Edwards, told reporters that the corrections officer involved in the initial incident was injured and taken to the hospital, but is believed to be doing well.
No inmates were injured in the event, and thankfully no other officers were injured either.
According to Edwards, the inmates were able to get out of their cells due to an issue with the locks in the facility. Edwards claims he has been working on fixing this issue since December.
Jacob Long, a spokesman for Mayor Lyda Krewson said that following the initial altercation between the officer and the inmate, it is reported that about 115 detainees on the fourth floor of the jail set fires, flooded floors and clogged toilets.
People incarcerated in the St. Louis city jail have taken over part of the jail and broke the windows, loved ones have gathered outside and are chanting in support of them.https://t.co/Z8czXbLSaR
— agitator in chief (@soit_goes) February 6, 2021
Long went on to say that after authorities regained control of the situation, about 65 inmates were to be transferred to the Medium Security Institution, also known as the Workhouse.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that inmates were seen gathered at the shattered windows of an upper floor of the jail around 6:30 a.m. They broke adjacent windows and threw chairs and other debris to the sidewalk below on Tucker Boulevard.
Pictures and video show flames just inside the windows, as inmates lit things on fire and threw them to the sidewalk below. Firefighters and emergency vehicles responded quickly, and were on scene shortly before 7 a.m. Long stated that by 10 a.m., cleanup and repair work had begun.
Dozens of people gathered to watch from the other side of Tucker and at least one live video of the disturbance was posted to Facebook. Allegedly family members of the inmates were among the bystanders, cheering on their loved ones.
Long had called the situation a “very dangerous disturbance” and said Krewson and Edwards were at the scene.
JAIL RIOT: Dozens of law enforcement officers worked for hours before bringing the riot at the St. Louis City Justice Center under control shortly before 10 a.m., a spokesman for Mayor Lyda Krewson, Jacob Long, said.https://t.co/Vjnxl9VxRS
— WTAJ News (@WTAJnews) February 7, 2021
The jail houses approximately 633 inmates, however the uprising only involved the fourth floor.
This was not the first, or even the second uprising to take place at the jail in recent months.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that it was at least the third disturbance at the CJC in recent weeks. Another occurred the last week of December and a second just days later. In those cases inmates had expressed concern about unsafe conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic. Currently, there are no known cases of COVID-19 among the inmates.
On Saturday, Edwards said he did not know what prompted the latest incident, saying:
“This time, no reason was given,”
However, social media is reporting that the riot began due to the “inhumane conditions” the prisoners are living in.
Dozens of inmates were transferred to the St. Louis Medium Security Institution following those earlier disruptions.
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Republished with permission from the Source
Gregory Hoyt is an I.T. Marketing and Sales professional based out in Sierra Vista, Arizona. While being a staunch and outspoken advocate of law enforcement and first responders, Gregory Hoyt also has the experience of having spent nearly 5 years in prison as well. Since then, he’s used his unique perspective to offer support and commentary about the criminal justice system. When not working or combating bad ideas, Hoyt also leisurely studies economics, history, and law.
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