Charges have been filed against three inmates allegedly involved in the violent attack on correction officers at the maximum-security Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Lancaster, Massachusetts, earlier this month.
The criminal complaints, issued in Clinton District Court on Friday, charge 39-year-old Jose Crespo, 36-year-old Heriberto Rivera-Negron, and 30-year-old Jeffrey Tapia with mayhem, armed assault to murder and assault to murder, the Massachusetts Department of Correction announced.
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Interim Commissioner Shawn Jenkins released a statement Saturday saying that the charges filed show that the Department of Correction will not allow this kind of thing to occur without consequence, adding that their investigators have worked tirelessly since the Sept. 18 incident to bring these charges forward.
“Attacks against our officers will not be tolerated and the serious charges filed against the three individuals demonstrates that the Massachusetts Department of Correction will take action," Jenkins said. "This type of violence is unacceptable and now those involved will be held accountable in the court of law."
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"We have and will continue to make the safety and health of our Correctional Officers a priority and appreciate their dedication to the DOC and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts," Jenkins added.
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The Massachusetts Correction Officers Federated Union said they're grateful to the Worcester County District Attorney's Office for their help, working with them in getting "the appropriate charges filed" against the inmates involved "in this ambush attack on our officers.
"We demand the DOC take action to make the prisons more secure by clearing out the deadly weapons and drugs that are too prevalent in our system," the union added. "Our focus remains on the safety of everyone in the prison system, to include our brothers and sisters of MCOFU."
Officials have previously said that two correction officers were stabbed around 6:20 a.m. that Wednesday as they were performing routine rounds. One of the officers was stabbed in the back of the head, and the other was repeatedly stabbed 12 times in the back.
An additional three correction officers were injured while responding to help. All five were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment of various injuries.
The officer who was repeatedly stabbed was the last to leave the hospital, having suffered a punctured lung.
Surveillance video was released last Friday showing the attack, with the the Massachusetts Correction Officers Federated Union saying at the time that they were "stunned, appalled and angry with the level of brutality" in the video -- but they were not surprised.
"We have been warning the DOC of something like this. Our Officers are continuing to get hurt. This horrifying video speaks for itself," the executive board said in a statement after the video's release. "Change has to come, and it has to come swiftly."
It was just last month that the union had sounded the alarm that dozens of “homemade sharpened weapons” were found inside the maximum security prison. Dennis Martin, the president of the Massachusetts Correction Officers Federated Union, said those weapons are being fashioned out of free tablets they are given. He said the inmates smash the tablets, which have a metal strip of them which they use to create weapons from.
According to Martin, the union has been warning the state about issues at the prison for nearly three years, including an increase in weapons and drugs, but nothing has been done about it. He said the union is asking the Department of Corrections to bring in specialized units to come in "and shake this place down," getting rid of weapons and contraband.
Two state legislators -- Sen. Peter Durant and Rep. Michael Soter -- have also called for an investigation into what happened.
Those charged in this case will make their first court appearances in October. Rivera-Negron's arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 10, with Crespo making his appearance in court on Oct. 11, and Tapia 's arraignment on Oct. 15. It wasn't immediately clear if any had obtained an attorney.
