Inmates in Kansas prison refuse to return to cell houses

Prison staff at El Dorado Correctional Facility were attempting to return prisoners to their cell houses on Thursday afternoon after some refused earlier in the day.

The Kansas Department of Corrections said no violence has occurred, and neither offenders nor staff had been injured. “Measures to return the offenders” to their cell houses were ongoing, spokesman Todd Fertig said Thursday afternoon.

“Again, there have been no injuries and no acts of violence, and the facility is secure,” Fertig said in an email.

The agency will conduct a review of the incidents after the prisoners are returned to their cell houses. Fertig did not say how many prisoners were refusing to return.

An email sent out to KDOC staff members at 12:52 p.m. said the facility was on lockdown. The Kansas Organization of State Employees, a state workers’ union, forwarded the email to The Eagle.

The union has been drawing attention in recent days to staffing conditions at the prison. Workers were given notice last week that 12-hour shifts will begin for some guards on July 2.

KDOC has acknowledged a “shortage of qualified applicants” in the region surrounding the prison but says recruitment efforts are ongoing.

This story was originally published June 29, 2017 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Inmates in Kansas prison refuse to return to cell houses."