‘Gangland’ ban sparks jail inmate rampage

By Leslie Wood
Staff writer

GALLUP — The McKinley County Adult Detention was locked down for at least three hours Thursday night while jail employees stifled a minor riot at the facility.

Warden Donna Goodrich said 10 inmates became upset at about 6 p.m. when corrections officers would not let them watch the television show “Gangland” during dinner. They subsequently covered their faces with wash cloths to disguise their identities and barricaded themselves inside their pod.
The involved inmates also destroyed a television worth about $150 and spread the contents of their shampoo packets onto the jail floor. Goodrich said an additional 20 corrections officers suited in riot gear were called to the jail to help control the situation.

A jail captain broke the barricaded door open and sprayed pepper spray balls into the pod. The 10 inmates soon surrendered and were each taken into a segregated cell after a decontamination process.

“They pretty much gave up immediately,” Goodrich said.

Criminal charges are pending against the involved inmates. Goodrich said the inmates could face a third-degree felony count for each corrections officer that was endangered during the riot. She said a few of the inmates were scheduled for release within days.

“It definitely wasn’t worth it,” Goodrich said of the inmates’ behavior.

Some of the inmates were also reportedly upset that the jail hadn’t conducted a sweat lodge session within recent weeks. Twenty-two inmates chose not to participate in the disturbance.

Goodrich said the incident coincided with the city’s DWI roadblock and left many officers waiting outside the jail to book alleged offenders until the riot was quelled at about 9 p.m.