Fury in The Cellblock

Everything at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville was turned inside out: inmates were captors, guards were held prisoner, and chaos reigned. The standoff began after an estimated 450 inmates rioted and barricaded themselves into Cell Block L, taking guards hostage. So far the bloody uprising has left at least seven inmates and one guard dead. On Friday, as part of ongoing negotiations between prisoners and law-enforcement officials, an inmate who identified himself as Abdul Samad Mumin went on live TV to issue a set of demands, which included calls for higher-paying prison jobs, greater religious freedom for Muslim inmates and amnesty for the takeover's participants. Mumin also accused prison administrators of "killing innocent peoples, ((hanging)) them in J Block, saying they committed suicide." After the broadcast, a hostage was released. Negotiators reported "significant progress"; and there was hope that the worst was over.