Violence behind the walls of S.C.’s prisons is increasing rapidly – to the point of being out of control. Since 2015, the number of inmates murdered has quadrupled + the number of prison staff assaulted by inmates has nearly doubled.
What in the world is going on behind bars? S.C. prisons are understaffed – there are 652 open positions for prison guards among the state’s 21 prisons (but Gov. McMaster is trying to give departments more money for staff retention).
Additional problems? 68% of inmates are considered violent now, vs, the 40% in past years. And smuggled cell phones (6,318 found last year) present dangerous encounters between inmates and staff.
