A sergeant and four correction officers were injured during a series of violent incidents over four weeks at Five Points Correctional Facility in Romulus, according to the state correction officers union.
NYSCOPBA said the incidents included two weapon attacks by the same inmate, a large recreation yard fight, assaults on staff and multiple inmate altercations at the maximum-security prison.
The first two attacks happened May 30 and May 31 and involved the same inmate, according to the union.
On May 30, NYSCOPBA said the inmate tried to stab a sergeant with a makeshift shank when the sergeant opened the cell's feed hatch to apply handcuffs. The sergeant closed the hatch and pinned the inmate's arm, forcing him to pull it back before the weapon made contact.
The next day, as the sergeant was removing the inmate's handcuffs through the feed hatch, the inmate again attacked, making repeated slashing motions with a weapon and striking the sergeant in the forearm, according to NYSCOPBA.
The sergeant suffered an arm laceration and was taken to Geneva Hospital for treatment. Staff believe the weapon from the first attack was flushed down the toilet, and the weapon from the second assault was not recovered.
Also on May 31, an officer conducting security rounds was assaulted when an inmate threw a mixture of urine and feces from a cup through a cell door, striking the officer in the face and mouth. The officer was treated at the facility and then taken to Geneva Hospital because of significant exposure and eye irritation.
On June 21, officers responded to a large inmate fight in a fenced recreation area containing inmate telephones. NYSCOPBA said officers gave several orders to stop fighting before deploying OC spray, which eventually ended the disturbance.
One inmate refused to submit to handcuffs and became combative, according to the union. Officers restrained him with assistance from a National Guard member, but NYSCOPBA said the inmate remained combative while being escorted through a hallway, striking one officer in the chest with his shoulder and spitting on another officer.
Two additional inmate fights broke out near the basketball court and weight area at the same time. Officers deployed OC spray in both incidents, ending the fights.
Afterward, officers recovered a sharpened toothbrush weapon from the recreation yard and found two bundles of marijuana during a frisk of one inmate involved in the fights, the union said.
On June 22, three officers and one sergeant were injured after an inmate refused to return to his cell after afternoon recreation, argued with staff and ignored orders to return to his cell.
NYSCOPBA said the inmate struck one officer in the face when officers tried to restrain him. Three other inmates rushed toward the incident, and one attacked an officer after being taken to the ground, striking her and climbing on top of her before staff pulled him away.
Three officers suffered knee, hand, elbow and facial injuries and were treated by facility medical staff. The sergeant suffered hand and knee injuries, was taken to Geneva Hospital with a sprained knee and did not return to duty.
The final incident happened June 23, when two inmates refused orders to return to their cells after recreation and blocked the entrance to a cellblock. NYSCOPBA said staff restrained both inmates, and no staff members were injured in that incident.
All inmates involved face internal disciplinary charges. NYSCOPBA Western Region Vice President Kenny Gold said the incidents show the volatility inside state prisons and called for disciplinary action and prosecution when inmates attack staff.
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