California State Prison, Corcoran
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| Location | Corcoran, California, United States |
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| Coordinates | 36°03′36″N 119°32′56″W / 36.060°N 119.549°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Security class | minimum-maximum |
| Capacity | 3,116 (but houses 5,685 as of September 2007) |
| Opened | 1988 |
| Managed by | California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation |
| Director | Derral G. Adams, Warden |
California State Prison, Corcoran (COR) is a male-only California state prison located in the city of Corcoran, in Kings County. It is also known as "Corcoran State Prison"[1], "CSP-COR"[2], "CSP-Corcoran"[2], "CSP-C"[3], or "Corcoran I"[1] . It should not be confused with the newer California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison, Corcoran, which is just south of COR and is known as "Corcoran II"[1].
Current facility
As of Fiscal Year 2002/2003, COR had a total of 1,703 staff and an annual institutional budget of $115 million.[2] As of September 2007, it had a design capacity of 3,116 but a total institution population of 5,685, for an occupancy rate of 182.4 percent.[4]
COR's 942 acres (3.81 km2) include the following facilities[2][5]:
- Level I housing ("Open dormitories without a secure perimeter").
- Level III housing ("Individual cells, fenced perimeters and armed coverage").
- Level IV housing ("Cells, fenced or walled perimeters, electronic security, more staff and armed officers both inside and outside the installation").
- Security Housing Units, "the most secure area[s] within a Level IV prison designed to provide maximum coverage." Among these units is the Protective Housing Unit which holds up to 47 prisoners who require "extraordinary protection from other prisoners"[6] The Protective Housing Unit has been described as "strikingly calm" because inmates "don't want to be moved somewhere less guarded."[6] Only one violent incident occurred in the Protective Housing Unit, in 1999 "when a guard left a door open and three inmates from the secure housing unit next door attacked Charles Manson and Juan Corona.
- Acute care hospital.
- Prison Industry Authority.
History
Built on what was once Tulare Lake, home to the Yokut Native American people[7], the facility opened in 1988[8]. The prison hospital was dedicated in October 1993.[9]
A front-page article by Mark Arax in the August 1996 Los Angeles Times claimed that COR was "the most troubled of the 32 state prisons."[10] At the time, COR officers had shot and killed more inmates "than any prison in the country" in COR's eight years of existence; based on interviews and documents, Arax concluded that many shootings of prisoners were "not justified" and that in some cases "the wrong inmate was killed by mistake."[10] Furthermore, the article alleged that "officers... and their supervisors staged fights between inmates" during "gladiator days."[10] In November 1996, CBS Evening News broadcast "video footage of an inmate fatally shot by guards" at COR in 1994; this death "spawned a probe by the Federal Bureau of Investigation of alleged inmate abuses by guards."[11]
A March 1997 episode of the CBS show 60 Minutes discussed the 1994 death, "the alleged cover-up and the alarming number of shootings at the prison."[12] The California Department of Corrections issued the results of its own investigation in November 1997, which found "isolated incidents of staff misconduct" but no "'widespread staff conspiracy' to abuse prisoners."[13]
A film entitled "Maximum Security University," which used prison surveillance tapes showing four 1989-1993 fights "end[ing] when a guard fatally shoots a combatant," was released in February 1998.[14] That month, eight California correctional officers and supervisors were indicted "on federal criminal civil rights charges in connection with inmate fights that occurred at Corcoran State Prison in 1994"[15]. After a trial, the eight men were "acquitted of all charges" in June 2000.[16]
Subsequently, COR has been featured in at least two episodes of MSNBC's Lockup series: "Inside Corcoran" (which first aired as early as 2003)[17] and "Return to Corcoran" (which first aired in 2005).[18]
Notable inmates
The prison's most prominent inmates include:
- Juan Corona, who murdered 25 people in 1971. He was transferred to COR from the Correctional Training Facility in 1992[19][20] and now lives in COR's Protective Housing Unit.[6]
- Patrick Kearney, convicted serial killer.[21] He has an automatic parole hearing every six years, the most recent in February 2007.[22]
- Charles Manson, who was transferred from San Quentin State Prison to COR in March 1989.[23] In May 2007 he was denied parole and will not be eligible for release again until 2012.[24] He lives in COR's Protective Housing Unit.[6]
- Joe "Pegleg" Morgan, leader and co-founder of the Mexican Mafia. He was at Pelican Bay State Prison prior to being hospitalized at COR from October 1993 until his death in November 1993.[25]
- Sirhan Sirhan, convicted assassin of United States Senator Robert F. “Bobby” Kennedy. He was transferred to COR from the Correctional Training Facility in 1992[20][26] and lived in COR's Protective Housing Unit until he was moved to a harsher lockdown [at COR] in 2003.[6] He was denied parole in March 2006, and his next parole hearing will be in 2011.[27]
- Dana Ewell, convicted triple murderer, who ordered the murders of his family in 1992. Currently serving three life sentences, is appealing the sentence.[28]
- Mikhail Markhasev, convicted murderer of Ennis Cosby, son of entertainer Bill Cosby.[29] In 1998, he received a sentence of life without parole, plus 10 years.[30]
References
- ^ a b c City of Corcoran, California. About Corcoran. Accessed 11 Dec 2007.
- ^ a b c d California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. California State Prison, Corcoran (CSP-Corcoran). Accessed 12 Dec 2007.
- ^ Office of the Governor, State of California. Governor Schwarzenegger Announces Appointments 08/24/07.
- ^ California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Monthly Report of Population as of Midnight September 30, 2007.
- ^ California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. California's Correctional Facilities. 15 Oct 2007.
- ^ a b c d e Curtis, Kim. Even in prison Jackson would be 'star'. Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), June 13, 2005.
- ^ Broder, John M. Spun and Unspun Tales of a California Cotton King. New York Times, January 8, 2004.
- ^ Good, Bob. First Inmates Arrive at Corcoran Prison. Fresno Bee, February 23, 1988.
- ^ Diaz, Sam. Corcoran Prison Opens Hospital Doors. It's Like Most Facilities, Except for the Armed Guards, Security Cameras and Grill Gates. Fresno Bee, October 28, 1993.
- ^ a b c Arax, Mark. Tales of Brutality Behind Bars; Five officers claim staging of "gladiator days," other abuses at Corcoran State Prison. FBI is investigating facility, which has most killings of inmates in U.S. Los Angeles Times, August 21, 1996.
- ^ Podger, Pamela J. Video of Fatal Prison Shooting at Corcoran Stirs Controversy. Fresno Bee, November 20, 1996.
- ^ "60 Minutes" Spotlights Corcoran. "Deadliest Prison" Segment Will Lead Off Sunday's Broadcast. Fresno Bee, March 29, 1997.
- ^ Holding, Reynolds. State Corrections Dept. Clears Itself in Probe of Corcoran Prison. San Francisco Chronicle, November 27, 1997.
- ^ A Film Aims to Expose Prison Deaths. Private Investigator Hopes Corcoran Footage Stirs Debate, Reform. Fresno Bee, February 16, 1998.
- ^ United States Department of Justice. Eight Officers Indicted for Civil Rights Violations at Corcoran State Prison in California. February 26, 1998.
- ^ Bier, Jerry, et al. All 8 Corcoran Guards Acquitted. Applause Rocks the Courtroom After the Verdicts. Fresno Bee, June 10, 2000.
- ^ Primetime mailing list. New Year's Day Programming on America's Newschannel MSNBC. The Mail Archive, January 1, 2003.
- ^ MSNBC - "Lockup: Return to Corcoran" on TV tonight (01/07/06) (discussion thread).
- ^ Juan Corona denied parole for 2nd time. San Diego Union, June 24, 1987.
- ^ a b Grossi, Mark. Corcoran Prison Home to Who's-Who of Killers. The List of Infamous Murderers at the State Facility has Grown This Week to Include Sirhan Sirhan and Juan Corona. Fresno Bee, June 5, 1992.
- ^ Woodhull, Tim. Fighting a Killer. Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), July 7, 1996.
- ^ Sudano, Andrea. Victim's family is haunted by Trash Bag killer's deeds. Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), February 18, 2007.
- ^ Lopez, Pablo. Charles Manson Transferred to Corcoran Prison. Fresno Bee, March 16, 1989.
- ^ Charles Manson, for 11th time, is denied parole in Tate-LaBianca slayings. Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), May 24, 2007.
- ^ Katz, Jesse. Reputed Mexican Mafia Leader Dies in Prison at 64. Los Angeles Times, November 10, 1993.
- ^ Wilstein, Steve. Sirhan denied parole for 10th time in RFK killing. Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), May 24, 1989.
- ^ Barbassa, Juliana. Robert Kennedy killer denied parole. Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), March 16, 2006.
- ^ Swinton, Nate. Appealing to God. The Santa Clara, May 23, 2002.
- ^ Siemaszko, Corky. Scott's Fate Still in Limbo. New York Daily News, December 11, 2004.
- ^ Berry, Steve. Cosby’s Killer Gets Life in Prison. Los Angeles Times, August 12, 1998.
External links
Center for Land Use Interpretation. Corcoran State Prison. Entry in Land Use Database of "unusual and exemplary sites throughout the United States." Accessed 13 Dec 2007.