| Update on February 28 Prison Events |
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| Fugitive Captured by Pocatello |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 1, 2001
CONTACT: Perrin Damon, 503-945-0925
perrin.p.damon@state.or..us
Earlier news releases are available at: http://www.doc.state.or.us
Lee Knoch, 23, who escaped last night from Snake River Correctional Institution in Ontario, was captured at 7:33 a.m MST this morning by Fort Hall Tribal Police near Pocatello, Idaho.
Knoch was arrested after allegedly breaking into a residence on the Fort Hall Reservation. The residents of the home, who returned unexpectedly, used a shovel to subdue him. Knoch was taken to a hospital for treatment of injuries, including a deep cut he received presumably from climbing through the prison’s razor ribbon. He was arrested by the Fort Hall Tribal Police.
Knoch reached the Pocatello area by allegedly stealing a pick-up truck from an Ontario irrigation company. Enroute he allegedly broke into a camper and stole clothing.
Knoch’s activities in Idaho are under investigation by the Idaho State Police, the Fort Hall Tribal Police and the FBI. Escape and car theft charges in Malheur County are pending as are charges for the burglaries in Idaho.
Knoch will be returned to Oregon following extradition proceedings. Upon his return he will appear before a Department of Corrections hearings officer and be sanctioned up to 6 months in disciplinary segregation. During that time his classification will be reviewed. If he is reclassified as maximum custody he will be housed in one of the state’s two Intensive Management Units.
Investigators from the Oregon Department of Corrections and the Oregon State Police are investigating the actual escape. Details are not yet available.
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| Inmate Disturbance at TRCI |
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Inmate Disturbance at Two Rivers Correctional Institution
Property damage assessments have begun at Two Rivers Correctional Institution in Umatilla following last night’s disturbance in a 96-bed housing unit. Nine inmates were involved in the disturbance and 77 obeyed orders to return to their cells.
One of the two staff on the unit received a very minor injury before they secured themselves in the officers’ station.
During the hour or so that the nine inmates were acting out, they caused substantial property damage. Among the unit’s furnishings that were damaged or destroyed are soda dispensers, classroom furniture, ceiling tiles, sprinkler heads, legal library computers (not networked), glass, and inmate telephones. Some flooding also occurred but is not believed to be serious.
The inmates immediately obeyed staff orders to drop to the ground when the prison’s Tactical Emergency Response Team entered the unit from two different points. No use of force was necessary. The involved inmates were handcuffed and escorted to the prison’s Disciplinary Segregation Unit.
The inmates will be charged with misconduct within the Department of Corrections’ disciplinary system and, depending upon the findings of the department’s hearings officer, could receive up to six months in disciplinary segregation. Their classification will be reviewed and if any or all are reclassified to maximum custody, they will be transferred to one of the state’s two Intensive Management Units until they demonstrate that they can live in the general population and obey the rules.
The 77 inmates who obeyed staff orders were moved from the damaged unit (Unit 9) to Unit 10 between 12 a.m. and 3 a.m. today. Unit 10 was scheduled to open March 5 and was ready for occupancy.
Two Rivers Correctional Institution remains in a modified lockdown today that is expected to be lifted tomorrow. Inmates in critical jobs were allowed to report to work today in the prison’s kitchen, laundry and physical plant maintenance.
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