How the newest federal prison became one of the deadliest
NPR, May 31, 2022: How the newest federal prison became one of the deadliest
“Bobby Everson was nearing the end of his decade-long federal prison sentence, but he feared he wouldn't make it home alive.
“In July 2021, he was sent to the Special Management Unit at the new U.S. penitentiary in Thomson, Ill. — a program meant for some of the most violent and disruptive prisoners, though many have ended up there who don't fit that description. Everson, who was serving time for drug and weapon charges, had recently been written up for ‘threatening bodily harm’ and ‘assault without serious injury,’ though prison records don't provide details. After his transfer, his letters home to his family in New York grew more desperate with each passing week.
“Officials claimed that opening Thomson would make federal prisons safer by relieving dangerous overcrowding. But an investigation by The Marshall Project and NPR found that the newest U.S. penitentiary has quickly become one of the deadliest, with five suspected homicides and two alleged suicides since 2019.”
Additional reading:
NPR, May 31, 2022: Five things to know about one of the deadliest federal prisons
ABC News, April 7, 2022: After several attacks on staff, Thomson prison union pleads for more employees
Quad-City Times, April 5, 2022: Thomson prison union demands return of search team after staff member assaulted
NPR, October 26, 2016: Inside Lewisburg Prison: A Choice Between A Violent Cellmate Or Shackles
