United States Penitentiary, Pollock

Coordinates: 31°28′00″N 92°26′30″W / 31.46667°N 92.44167°W / 31.46667; -92.44167
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United States Penitentiary, Pollock
Map
LocationGrant Parish
near Pollock, Louisiana
StatusOperational
Security classHigh-security (with minimum-security prison camp)
Capacity1,218 [1,067 at the USP, 151 in prison camp] (September 2023)
Opened2000[1]
Managed byFederal Bureau of Prisons

The United States Penitentiary, Pollock (USP Pollock) is a high-security United States federal prison for male inmates in unincorporated Grant Parish, Louisiana.[2] It is part of the Pollock Federal Correctional Complex (FCC Pollock) and operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice. The facility also has an adjacent satellite prison camp for minimum-security male offenders.

FCC Pollock is located in central Louisiana, approximately 15 miles north of Alexandria.[3]

Notable incidents[edit]

2006 escape[edit]

On April 5, 2006, convicted murderer Richard Lee McNair escaped from USP Pollock.[4] McNair's duties in prison included work in a manufacturing area, where he repaired old, torn mailbags. He held this position for several months, during which he plotted his escape. McNair escaped by constructing an "escape pod," which included a breathing tube, and burying it under a pile of outgoing mailbags. At approximately 9:45 AM, prison staff placed the mailbags on a pallet, transported it to a nearby warehouse outside the prison's perimeter fence, and went for lunch. McNair then cut himself out of the pod and escaped at 11:00 AM. Having observed prison operations and the times when prisoner counts were conducted, McNair knew that his absence would not be discovered until 4:00 PM. After an over yearlong manhunt, McNair was captured in New Brunswick, Canada by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police on Oct. 25, 2007 after being featured on the television program America's Most Wanted.[4][5][6] Since McNair had previously escaped from a county jail and a state prison in North Dakota in 1987 and 1992, he was classified as a high-escape risk and transferred to the United States Penitentiary, Florence ADX, the federal supermax prison in Colorado which holds inmates requiring the tightest controls.[7]

2007 inmate murder[edit]

In November 2007, inmate William Anthony Bullock was stabbed to death with a shank during an altercation with another inmate, identified as Shaun Wayne Williams. Williams had crafted the shank from a part of a cell locker. Williams, who was serving a 96-month sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in 2009 and sentenced to an additional 15 years in prison.[8][9] Williams is currently incarcerated at USP Big Sandy and scheduled to be released on January 21, 2023.

Inmate Steven Prater, who was serving a 51-month sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm, was fatally injured during a fight with another inmate on June 24, 2010.[10][11] On January 18, 2010, inmate Carlton Coltrane was stabbed to death by another inmate. Coltrane's mother told The Washington Post that her son, who was serving a sentence for bank robbery, told her several days before that there were running disputes between gangs of inmates from Louisiana and the Washington, DC area.[12] The murders of Prater and Coltrane remain under investigation.[citation needed]

Notable Inmates[edit]

Current[edit]

Inmate Name Register Number Status Details
Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari 42771-177 Serving a life sentence Serving a life sentence for a failed bomb plot.[13]
Ricky Mungia 26372-077 Serving a life sentence Sentenced in 1996 for a racially charged attack and carrying unregistered guns[14]
Dawayne Brown 32909-016 Now at USP Atwater.

Scheduled for release on December 2, 2025.

Attempted assault with a deadly weapon.
Mohammed Khalifa 67830-509 Serving a life sentence Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to support Islamic State
James Edward Rose 10820-007 Serving a life sentence. Found guilty of attempted murder after stabbing correctional officers at USP McCreary during a routine cell check.

Former[edit]

Inmate Name Register Number Status Details
Chimene Hamilton Onyeri 79217-380 Transferred to USP Florence High. Serving a life sentence. Serving life for attempted assassination of Texas judge Julie Kocurek after she sentenced him for running a tax refund scam.
Richard Lee McNair 13829-045 Transferred to ADX Florence and then to USP Florence High.

Serving two consecutive life sentences on a state murder charge from North Dakota in 1987.

Murderer from North Dakota sentenced to 2 life sentences, escaped in 2006.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "USP Pollock | Louisiana Penitentiary | FCC Pollock".
  2. ^ "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Grant Parish, LA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. p. 18 (PDF p. 19/30). Retrieved 2022-08-15. United States Penitentiary Pollock
  3. ^ "BOP: USP Pollock". Bop.gov. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  4. ^ a b "Escaped Murderer Richard Lee McNair". Crime.about.com. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  5. ^ Christopher, Byron. "Richard Lee McNair Breaks His Silence" Archived 2011-10-07 at the Wayback Machine. Last Link on the Left. May 14, 2009. Retrieved September 22, 2011.
  6. ^ "America's Most Wanted with John Walsh". AMW. 2013-09-20. Archived from the original on 2012-10-25. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  7. ^ "Federal Bureau of Prisons". Bop.gov. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  8. ^ "U.S. Penintentiary Inmate Convicted of Voluntary Manslaughter of Another Inmate" (PDF). Justice.gov. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  9. ^ "FBI — Pollock Inmate Sentenced for Voluntary Manslaughter". Fbi.gov. 2009-12-01. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  10. ^ "Inmate dies following attack at Pollock prison | Corrections Special Operations - The Official Gateway To The Corrections Special Operations Community". Corspecops.com. 2010-06-25. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  11. ^ "Inmate dies after fight at Pollock prison | WBRZ News 2 Louisiana : Baton Rouge, LA |". Wbrz.com. 2010-06-25. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  12. ^ "Local Digest". Washingtonpost.com. 2010-01-20. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
  13. ^ "Saudi Student Sentenced to Life in Prison for Attempted Use of Weapon of Mass Destruction". www.justice.gov. 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
  14. ^ Ap (1996-04-08). "Life Sentences for 3 Men in Racial Attacks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-11-30.

External links[edit]

31°28′00″N 92°26′30″W / 31.46667°N 92.44167°W / 31.46667; -92.44167