Order Restored After Disturbance

Cold Dinner Leads to Disruption Involving 35 Inmates

A disturbance involving 35 inmates at the D.C. jail broke out Sunday night and ended early in the morning yesterday, but authorities said there were no escapes and no injuries.

"At no time was there a threat to the community," Assistant Police Chief Alfred Durham said.

The commotion started about 6:30 p.m. Sunday, when two inmates got into a fight as dinner was being served in the maximum security area in the jail's southeast wing, officials said. It took corrections officers two hours to quell the fight and restore order, officials said.

The staff then served dinner, which had gotten cold, to 160 inmates in that unit. The cold dinner set off the larger disorder, which began between 8:30 and 9 p.m. and continued until 3:30 a.m.

"The food that was ready was not reheated and prepared all over," said Anthony Diallo, a jail spokesman. "Most inmates complied by eating the food and going back to their cells, but 35 were highly disturbed."

Diallo said those inmates refused to return to their cells and complained about the facility.

"Some complained about the food, some said, 'I want more rec time, I want to have more visitors,' " Diallo said.

Corrections officers used pepper spray to get the group under control, he said. The inmates involved were later examined by medical personnel. No weapons were found. The two men in the initial fight were moved to a different section of the facility, officials said.

At 12:30 a.m., dozens of D.C. police officers were sent to the jail in Southeast Washington to assist corrections personnel. Several D.C. firetrucks and ambulances were also on the scene, as were vehicles from the department's emergency response team. Shortly before 2:30 a.m., red lights on the jail's roof were flashing.

"When anything happens at the jail, we always come to secure the perimeter," said Durham, the assistant police chief.

D.C. Council member Phil Mendelson (D-At Large) said he thought the corrections staff handled the incident well. He pointed out that the jail is under capacity; in recent years, crowding has contributed to occasional problems.

The jail has 1,900 inmates, 200 below capacity.