Pelican Bay Riot by Glenn Langohr

Investigators known as the I.G.I. These Security Escort guards sometimes whispered insight integral to survival our way, but it took a respectful relationship developing. The most often assist from them were warnings when certain good prison inmate influencers were being investigated by the I.G.I as gang leaders or shot callers. Other warnings would come when the building or yard was about to be searched for inmate made wine or weapons.
     
     
    One of the Security Escorts standing at the holding cell had a name plate- Heart, and the other- Ligazzaro. Heart got three holding cells attention and spoke, "Listen for your last name and which yard you will be housed in...Pedillo, Rodriguez, Jackson, Guerrero, Abadaca and Johnson, D-Yard." It felt like I hit the lottery and I wondered if my friend Damon had influenced my arrival into his domain.
     
     
    The walk from the holding cells in Receiving went through a door out a 20 foot wide strip of concrete that opened up into a sideways T. To the left the direction to walk to A and B Yards and to the right was C and D Yards. We turned right and a 20 foot high chain link fence was our next stop. Security Escort Heart spoke into a 2-way, "Pop gate C and D."
     
     
    We walked through and passed another gate that opened up to C Yard on the left. I looked through the fence to see a glimpse of the whole yard. There was a chain link fence splitting the yard into two yards so half the buildings and the gym shared a yard with the other buildings sharing the other half. The strategy for the split yard was an attempt to make riots easier to contain. It didn't work. The inmates always thought of ways to make things more complicated and I knew that fence was a bigger security threat because inmates used finger nail clippers or other cutting tools to remove a link of the fence for a piece of steel to turn into an ice pick. Also during an organized race war the fence down the middle made it harder for prison guards to get to the action quickly.
     
     
    We kept walking and got to the D Yard gate. It wasn't split down the middle with a fence so it was a free for all. The yard opened up like a baseball field and we were in the stands behind home plate waiting for a pitch and a swing.
     
     
    A 10 foot wide strip of asphalt track circled the yard and to the right where a foul ball down the first base line would have been was Building 5. The building was a tan color offset by a square tinted bullet proof glass of gun tower above. Each building’s gun tower also had an interior view of the building on the other end. Next down the line was Building 4. Down that line further where shallow right center field would have been was Building 3. Building 2 was where center field would have been and Building 1 was the back of the yard in deep center. In deep left center the concrete track started to circle back right where the Prison Chow Hall was and next was the Prison Gun Tower.
     
     
    After the Prison Gun Tower down the same line of track the Prison Gym where a foul ball down the left field line would have been, then the Program Office for the Prison Administration, then about 100 feet for other offices, then our gate into the yard. Security Escort Heart spoke into the 2-way, "Pop gate D Yard."
     
     
    The gate popped open and we walked into D Yard. There was a video camera positioned in the right hand corner attached to the fence I hadn’t seen. I looked back at the Gun Tower for the entire yard by the Gym and noticed its blind spot. They couldn’t see over the handball courts in front of Building 3. The video camera covered it.
     
     
    We walked the asphalt track for 20 more yards until it emptied into a 10 foot wide paved walkway led to the vestibule and we were there. Security Escort Heart looked at me close for the first time and said, “I’ve heard of you.” I smiled and said, “Believe nothing you hear and half of what you see.” Heart smiled back and said, “But I’ve heard good