NCJ Number
185123
Journal
Corrections Today Volume: 62 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2000 Pages: 128-131
Date Published
July 2000
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article profiles the Fourth Annual Mock Prison Riot held May 14-17, 2000, at the former West Virginia State Penitentiary at Moundsville.
Abstract
The purpose of the mock riot was to introduce emerging corrections technologies and give correctional officers, tactical team members, and trainers the opportunity to test and evaluate these technologies in training scenarios. It also allowed vendors, through exhibition and demonstration, to introduce new technologies to corrections personnel. For the first time, workshops were presented as part of the 3-day event. Topics included less-than-lethal weapons, vulnerability of correctional facilities, body armor, staff safety, flashlight tactical training, and riot assessment. A workshop on the causes of prison riots and their resolution was also held. Among the emerging technologies showcased were less-than-lethal weapons, forensic equipment, night vision instruments, hand-held thermal imagers, customized software programs, body restraints and body armor, noninvasive drug detection equipment, portable guard towers, strobe lighting, 3-D face identification systems, laser sensors, human-presence detection systems, and communications systems. Plans for the continuation and improvement of this annual event are discussed in the concluding section of the article.