N.C. Inmates, Upset by Move to Tennessee, Riot
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MASON, Tenn. — Inmates demanding to be returned home to North Carolina went on a rampage in a private prison, smashing toilets and sinks and knocking a hole in a dormitory wall.
Guards at the West Tennessee Detention Facility ended the riot late Saturday night by pumping pepper gas into two dormitories seized by the prisoners. The inmates were moved to the Shelby County Jail in Memphis, about 40 miles away. There were no deaths, injuries or escapes during the two-hour uprising.
Tipton County Sheriff Buddy Lewis said the 111 inmates had been sent to Tennessee by North Carolina’s Department of Corrections and had complained that they were now too far from their families.
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