Attica Correctional Facility Explained

Prison Name:	Attica Correctional Facility
Location:	639 Exchange Street Attica, New York
Status:	Operational
Classification:	Maximum
Capacity:	2,253^[1]
Opened:	1931
Managed By:	New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision
Warden:	Julie Wolcott (2022)

Attica Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison campus in the Town of Attica, New York,^{[2] [3]} operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. It was constructed in the 1930s in response to earlier riots within the New York state prisons.^[4]

A CS gas system (chlorobenzylidine malononitrile) installed in the mess hall and industry areas has been used to quell conflicts in these areas. The prison now holds numerous inmates who are serving various types of sentences (short-term to life). They are often sent to this facility because of disciplinary problems in other facilities.^[5] The prison is a maximum security facility.^[6]

In 1984, immediately adjacent to the Attica prison, the construction of the Wyoming Correctional Facility was completed. The Wyoming prison is a medium security facility.

Rebellions

See main article: Attica Prison riot. Attica was the site of a prison uprising in September 1971 in which inmates took control of the prison for several days. They were seeking to negotiate to improve conditions and treatment at the overcrowded prison. The uprising and subsequent retaking of the prison by the state resulted in 43 deaths and over 89 injuries. Police killed 39 people, ten of which included correctional officers and civilian employees who had been taken hostage.^[7] Three prisoners were killed by other inmates and one guard died later from injuries sustained during the initial uprising.^[8]

Notable inmates

• David Berkowitz, better known as Son of Sam, serial killer who confessed to killing six people and wounding several others in New York City during the late 1970s. Since becoming a Christian, Berkowitz has said that he should pay for the sins he has committed and will not seek parole. Berkowitz is now housed at Shawangunk Correctional Facility.^[9]
• H. Rap Brown, Black Panther Party leader, served a sentence in Attica from 1971 to 1976.^[10]
• Brandon Clark, perpetrator of the Murder of Bianca Devins and then posted her dead body online.^{[11] [12]}
• Jimmy Caci, a captain in the Los Angeles crime family, served eight years in Attica during the 1970s for armed robbery.^[13]
• Mark David Chapman pleaded guilty to murdering John Lennon in 1980. Chapman was sentenced to 20 years-to-life for killing Lennon and has been denied parole thirteen times amid campaigns against his release. Chapman is now housed at Green Haven Correctional Facility.^[14]
• Joseph Christopher, a serial killer who committed murders in the early 1980s in Buffalo, Manhattan, and Rochester. He was held in Attica in 1985. He died March 1, 1993.^[15]
• Edward Cummiskey, Westies hitman during the 1970s.^[16]
• Valentino Dixon^[17] was exonerated and released in 2018, after 27 years of incarceration, after another man confessed to the murder for which Dixon was convicted.^{[18] [19]}
• Dean Faiello, unlicensed physician who was convicted of the manslaughter of banker Maria Cruz in 2003.^[20]
• Colin Ferguson, who murdered six people in 1993 on the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) in a racist attack. Ferguson was sentenced to multiple life sentences; as of 2010, he is housed at Upstate Correctional Facility.^[21]
• Kendall Francois murdered eight women and stored their bodies in his home in Poughkeepsie, New York. Serving a life sentence without parole, he died in September 2014.^[22]
• Joe Gallo of the Colombo crime family spent nine years in Attica for attempted extortion.^[23]
• Arohn Kee, serial killer^[24]
• Sam Melville, notorious as "mad bomber" in 1960s. He was among 30 prisoners killed by New York State Police and other law enforcement, in addition to 10 hostages, in their suppression of the Attica Prison uprising on September 13, 1971.^[25]
• El Sayyid Nosair, 1993 World Trade Center bombing terrorist was housed in Attica for a short period related to the 1990 assassination of Meir Kahane.^[26]
• Ralph "Bucky" Phillips, convicted murderer, was captured after one of the largest manhunts in New York state history.^[27]
• Joseph 'Mad Dog' Sullivan, a mobster and the only man who has ever escaped the prison.^[28]
• Joel Rifkin, serial killer, was held here for more than four years in solitary confinement before being transferred to the Clinton Correctional Facility in Clinton County.^[29]
• Willie Sutton, robbed 100 banks from the late 1920s to 1952.^[30]
• David Sweat, killed a Broome County deputy sheriff in 2002 and escaped from Clinton Correctional Facility in 2015; was captured and transferred to Attica in 2017.^[31]

See also

• Inmates of Attica Correctional Facility v. Rockefeller

Further reading

• Book: Thompson, Heather Ann . BLOOD in the WATER : The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Its Legacy . 23 August 2016 . Pantheon Books . 9780375423222 . Vintage Books . New York.
• News: Robbins . Tom . D’Avolio . Lauren . March 2, 2015 . 3 Attica Guards Resign in Deal to Avoid Jail . . March 22, 2018.

External links

• Attica Correctional Facility webpage
• New York State Prison System webpage

Notes and References

1. Web site: Attica Correctional Facility . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20180117180531/http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Attica2011FactSheet.pdf . 17 January 2018 . 4 September 2016 . Correctional Association of New York.
2. "Facility Listing ." New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. Retrieved on July 2, 2010. "Attica Correctional Facility 639 Exchange St Attica, New York 14011-0149."
3. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Attica town, NY. U.S. Census Bureau. 2022-08-22. Attica Corr Facility.
4. Web site: Attica Correctional Facility prison, Attica, New York, United States Britannica . 2023-01-25 . www.britannica.com . en.
5. See Attica Prison riot
6. Web site: Attica Correctional Facility . 2023-01-25 . Department of Corrections and Community Supervision . en.
7. Web site: Robbins. Tom. September 9, 2016. April 12, 2024. Revisiting the Ghosts of Attica . The Marshall Project.
8. Web site: April 12, 2024. Timeline of Events of the Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Subsequent Legal Actions . New York State Archives.
9. News: Encore Presentation: Interview With David Berkowitz . Larry King Weekend. September 28, 2012. CNN. 2002. Interview transcript.
10. The Many Lives of H. Rap Brown. Time.
11. Web site: Brandon Clark sentenced in murder of 17-year-old Bianca Devins . March 16, 2021 .
12. Web site: NY Man Sentenced for Killing Teen, Posting Photos Online . March 17, 2021 .
13. News: MAFIA BASE SEEN SHIFTING UPSTATE. The New York Times . May 6, 1973. NYTimes.com.
14. Web site: Mark David Chapman Custody Record. March 3, 2023. Commission of Correction. March 3, 2023.
15. Web site: This serial killer left a trail of dead black men from Buffalo to New York City. December 20, 2017.
16. News: Quirk . Rory . 1990-03-29 . THE GUTS GORE OF AN IRISH GANG . en-US . Washington Post . 2023-01-25 . 0190-8286.
17. Web site: Valentino Dixon. Valentino Dixon.
18. News: September 20, 2018 . How Golf Digest and College Students Helped Free a Man Convicted of Murder . NY Times . 21 September 2018.
19. News: September 19, 2018 . NY Inmate-Artist Freed After Being Cleared of 1991 Slaying . NY Times . Associated Press .
20. Web site: 'Fake doctor' Dean Faiello sheds light on botched procedure that left woman dead nearly 20 years ago. December 9, 2022. ABC7 Chicago.
21. Web site: October 28, 2010 . FINDING STRENGTH AFTER LIRR TRAGEDY Ten years ago, a maniac on a commuter train killed 6, wounded 19 and changed untold lives . . https://web.archive.org/web/20101028100950/http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2003/12/07/2003-12-07_finding_strength_after_lirr_.html . 2010-10-28.
22. Web site: Serial killer Kendall Francois dies in prison; victims' families react to death. John. Ferro. Poughkeepsie Journal.
23. Web site: Mob boss Joe Gallo (Crazy Joe) is killed while celebrating his birthday at a Little Italy restaurant in 1972. New York Daily News. April 6, 2015 .
24. News: Rage and Taunts Fill Courtroom as a Killer Gets Life in Prison . The New York Times . January 27, 2001 . Finkelstein . Katherine E. . Waldman . Amy .
25. See Attica, The Official Report of the NYS Special Commission on Attica(1972); A Time To Die, (1972), by Tom Wicker, New York Times editor and columnist, on the observer committee
26. Web site: OFFICIALS SAY NOSAIR PLANNED ATTICA ESCAPE INMATE TIED TO TRADE CENTER PROBE. Dan. Herbeck. Buffalo News. March 17, 1993 .
27. Web site: Upstate prison held five notorious WNY killers. Buffalo News. June 9, 2015 .
28. http://biography.com/people/joseph-sullivan-565056 "Joseph Sullivan Biography"
29. Web site: Serial killer Joel Rifkin 'never expressed any remorse' for his crimes, spoke of his killings calmly: doc. Stephanie. Nolasco. April 10, 2021. Fox News.
30. Web site: Bank robber's legacy, Willie Sutton didn't snitch, kill...or stay in prison. New York Daily News. July 17, 2011 .
31. Web site: David Sweat busted for sex act during prison visiting hours. Kevin. Tampone. March 23, 2018. newyorkupstate.