When groups that polarize at opposite ends of the racial spectrum join together to fight injustice, there has to be a good reason for it. Such was the case in the Lucasville prison uprising. Staughton Lynd a historian/former attorney and the Director of the Freedom Schools in the1964 Mississippi Summer Project chronicles the outbreak at the prison and the 11-day occupation that followed.

"Lucasville-The Untold Story of a Prison Uprising" (recently released by the Temple University Press) tells the story of five inmates from that united in a case of extraordinary interracial solidarity. The book is a gripping tale of injustice and how 5 men were unfairly convicted of the murders of 9 inmates and a prison guard that was held hostage. Three of the Lucasville Five (Abdullah Hasan, Namir Abdul Mateen and Keith Lamar) are African Americans. Jason Robb and George Skatzes are White men who in 1993 were members of a white supremacist hate group called The Aryan Brotherhood.

Lynd's book contains statements from several prisoners revealing that most of the guard-on-prisoner brutality took place on J where the notorious "hole" was located. The 1983 murder of Jimmy Haynes, a mentally disturbed Black prisoner who was said to have been beaten to death by 12 guards "while nurses stood and watched" is exposed in the book. The beating deaths of Lincoln Carter and John Ingram (both of whom were alleged to have touched white nurses) is also revealed in the book. There is also an account depicting other atrocities such as prisoners being chained in their cells indefinitely, while being blasted with mace and tear gas.

After the murder of a popular teacher's aide, the entire prison was put on lockdown (confinement of each prisoner to their cell). According to Lynd's book, the entire population suffered a new level of abuse after the attack. Some of the tyranny included using inmates as snitches against each other. That same summer the prison deemed that all the windows should be closed, despite the fact that the blowers on the roof was broken. The heat, "hard-headedness about testing for tuberculosis" and prison overcrowding helped to kick off the outbreak.

Tuberculosis testing by injection and prison overcrowding are said to have caused the riot. Muslim prisoners rejected the testing saying that it was against their religious beliefs. They asked to be tested by X-ray or sputum. Warden Authur Tate denied the request. Lucasville was originally designed to accommodate 1540 prisoners. At the time of the uprising there were 1820 residents at the prison.
"To say that we were living in a pressure cooker is something of an understatement; it was a madhouse," Keith Lamar is quotes in Lynd's book.

The warden was warned about the pending situation as early as April 7th. On April 9th he left the prison without leaving a supervising official above the rank of lieutenant. Neither did he notify his staff that there was building tension at the prison. Lamar and others felt that the Warden may have wanted an uprising at the prison. They state in Lynd's book that they felt that Warden Tate hoped for a controlled uprising, because he wanted to request more funds from the state legislator. Lamar states that the officials had enough evidence to lock up key members of the uprising before the outbreak occurred.

On April 11th, 1993 (Easter Sunday) the prison was understaffed due to the holiday, "the lowest it had been for 30 days." On that day prisoners at the maximum-security prison in Lucasville, Ohio overpowered correctional officers on duty inside the L Block. The prisoners released the most badly injured officers and held on to eight of them. Eventually, two more hostages were released. One was murdered. The prisoners finally came to a 21-point agreement, surrendering on April 21. Four hundred and seven prisoners surrendered. Five hostages were released.

Three negotiators, a spokesman and Keith Lamar (who was described as the organizer of a "death squad" were charged with the murder of Officer Robert Vallandingham. The death squad was responsible for the five "supposed killings" of prisoner informants (snitches) during the early hours of the takeover. The Lucasville Five were sentenced to death and labeled the "worst of the worst," this despite the fact that not a single one of them actually laid a hand on Vallandingham. A lot of the evidence around the causes of the riot seem to stem from mismanagement of the situation by prison officials. Yet the brunt of the responsibility for the crimes committed on that fateful day fell into the laps of the Lucasville Five. The uprising is said to be "the longest prison riot in US history" and the "longest prison siege in US history."

With an IQ of 69, Namir Abdul Mateen (James Were) was considered borderline mentally retarded. The father was unable to hold jobs and was eventually incarcerated for aggravated robbery. He became a Muslim Imam to the prisoners while incarcerated. He was only four years short of coming before the board for parole at the time of the prison riot.
Jason Robb abused a variety of hallucinogens when he was fifteen. He was also drinking heavily. When he was 17 and under the influence of PCP, mehtaquaaludes, valium, marijuana and alcohol, he shot and killed a man. He was sentenced to 7-25 years. He said that he became a member of the Aryan Brotherhood after being approached by a "group of white guys." They got him a good job at the prison and urged him to go back to get his GED. By the age of 25, Robb was the 24-hour plumber at the prison and was one of the few allowed outside of his cell at any time of day or night. He even had his own toolbox.

Siddique Abdullah Hasan (Carlos Sanders) was primarily raised by his older sister. The children were raised by their single mother. Growing up without a father greatly impacted on Hasan™s development. He began to follow his older brother who was stealing, truant from school and involved in other delinquent activities. Hasan landed in foster care when he was only 10 years old. Several robberies and convictions later the boy was sentenced to zero to six years. Hasan™s attempt to go straight after his release in 1983 failed and by August 1984 he was back in prison.
George Skatzes is the oldest of the Lucasville Five. He grew up in a dysfunctional family where the children were seldom if ever hugged or shown love George™s father tried to get custody of his children but died before his dream came to fruition. The children never invited friends over because they were embarrassed by the lack of decent housing and clothing. Skatzes slipped into prison in 1970, followed by a stint in 1973. During the 1980™s Skatzes became involved in armed robberies with a man named James Rogers. After Skatzes broke with Rogers a business owner (Arthur Smith) was murdered. Rogers turned state™s evidence for immunity from charges that related to Smith™s murder along with 15 other robberies. He named Skatzes as Smith™s murderer.

Keith Lamar was a death row inmate at Lucasville at the time of the riot. He too grew up "the hard way." His neighborhood was pocked with drugs and violence. He lived with a stepfather that physically abused him for minor infractions. Lamar and his siblings lived in an inadequately heated house. Lamar quit high school and moved in with friends. He later achieved a GED and enrolled college while in prison.

After the dust settled in the yards and cellblocks of Lucasville, Lamar was charged with 9 counts of aggravated murder. As it turns out the prisoners initially intended to siege a single living area or pod. Things quickly spiraled out of hand and the rest is "history." Three groups, the Muslims, the Aryan Brotherhood and the Black Gangster Disciples joined in an unprecedented unified effort to address the problems and find solutions to ending the uprising.

Lynd's book takes the reader on a virtual trip behind the walls, into the cellblocks and yard of Lucasville during the uprising and offers explanations for the riot as well as providing proof that the state of Ohio had a significant share of the responsibility for the death of Officer Robert Vallandingham. Lynd feels that there be a general amnesty for riot-related offenses, because the institutions are partially guilty by not meeting the needs of the prisoners under their care. The Lucasville Five were convicted of murder and sentenced to death, yet not a one of them had a hands on part in the killing of Officer Vandandingham. Lynd said that he hopes that the book will stimulate debates and discussions around the case.

Copyright 2005