Riot at Hudson Correctional Facility under control - The Denver Post

Riot at Hudson Correctional Facility under control - The Denver Post

A riot at the privately owned Hudson Correctional Facility 25 miles northeast of Denver International Airport has been brought under control, prison authorities said this morning.

The prison, which holds approximately 750 inmates from the state of Alaska, is owned by Cornell Companies, Inc.

At approximately 1:30 a.m., 8-to-10 inmates "engaged in a disturbance" which was contained to one housing pod, according to a statement by Cornell.

There were no staff injuries but minor injuries were reported by some inmates.

No hostages were taken and personnel currently have full control of the facility, said Cornell.

At no time was the public in danger, said officials.

Richard Schmitz, spokesman for the Alaska Department of Corrections, said that preliminary information was that the riot was confined to one module of the prison.

"There were no hostages and no escapes," said Schmitz.

Colorado Department of Corrections spokeswoman Katherine Sanguinetti said that although the prison is privately owned, six inspectors from DOC's inspector general's office are headed to the prison.

The institution will be operating under modified conditions while an investigation is completed.

Weld County Undersheriff Margie Martinez said the Weld County Sheriff's Department assisted officials at the prison by sending two K9 units to the facility.

Martinez said the K9 units left the prison at 6:30 a.m. today and order had been restored.

Pamela Lobato-Garza, executive assistant to Hudson Warden Rick Veach, said things are under control.

The prison holds minimum- to medium- security adult males from Alaska. Schmitz said the Alaska inmates at Hudson generally have more than one year left on their sentences.

Cornell has operated the prison since 2009.

Schmitz said that the Hudson facility is the only prison in the lower 48 states where Alaska sends its inmates. He said that within Alaska, the Alaska Department of Corrections operates approximately a dozen prisons.