HOCKESSIN, Del. (AP) - A state corrections counselor who was taken hostage during a deadly riot at Delaware's maximum-security prison says prison officials are to blame.
Sixty-eight-year-old Patricia May says officials saw signs of trouble brewing but ignored them. She says that less than an hour before the February 2017 riot broke out, she had expressed fears to a colleague that she might be killed inside the prison.
May recounted her experience to The Associated Press on Friday in her first public interview about the ordeal.
The retired counselor says inmates are sorely in need of better conditions, counseling and programs, and that officials need to take suggested reforms seriously.
On Tuesday, Gov. John Carney and corrections officials will release a final report on efforts to implement 41 recommendations from an independent review team.
Building to be Demolished
DOVER, Del. (AP) - Delaware officials say they'll demolish a state prison building where inmates staged a deadly riot and hostage-taking last year.
Officials announced Monday that demolition of the C Building at James T. Vaughn Correctional Center is expected to begin this fall.
The building has been vacant since February of last year, when inmates rioted, taking three staffers hostage and killing correctional officer Steven Floyd.
Gov. John Carney says removing the building will help the mental and emotional health of officers who work at the prison.
Officials plan a news conference Tuesday to release a final report detailing progress in the Department of Correction's efforts to implement recommendations from an independent review team that investigated the riot and the events leading up to it.
