Report credits private contractor with swift handling of Arizona prison riot

PHOENIX — The Arizona Department of Corrections said that the private company that runs a prison where inmates recently rioted responded quickly, properly and minimized injuries.

The department concluded in a report dated March 13 that CoreCivic maintained public safety and acted in accordance with agency policies during the Feb. 25 violence at Red Rock Correctional Center in Eloy.

The report said the Tennessee-based private contractor’s actions minimized injuries and damages at the Pinal County men’s facility.

A dozen inmates and one guard were injured in the fracas, which the department described in a Facebook post, as inmates assaulting each other and staff.

There were no life-threatening injuries but several inmates were taken to the hospital.

According to the report, the riot took about 96 minutes to quell and CoreCivic staff secured the housing units and dining halls and the number of inmates on the prison yard.

The department said a criminal investigation of the riot was ongoing.

The medium-security prison is divided into two compounds, each having 1,000 beds for inmates.

Eloy is about 65 miles southeast of Phoenix and about 50 miles northwest of Tucson.

The state spent nearly $6,000 on the disturbance.

CoreCivic, formerly Corrections Corporation of America, operates 91 facilities across the country.

Besides detention and correctional centers, the 35-year-old company also owns and manages transitional and re-entry centers.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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