High Desert State Prison (California) on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
High Desert State Prison (HDSP) is a high-security
In late 2015 the state Office of the Inspector General completed a six-month investigation into conditions at the prison, after complaints of officer misconduct and prisoner abuse, and issued its report, calling for changes at the facility. Although there are buildings to house certain inmates in protective custody, such as sex offenders, officers put other prisoners near them. The prison has had a rapid turnover in top management for nearly a decade, with seven wardens in eight years. In their report investigators wrote there was a "perception of insularity and indifference to inmates" at High Desert, exacerbated by its remoteness and "a labor organization that opposes oversight to the point of actively discouraging members from coming forward with information that could … adversely affect another officer."
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Official website
''Special Review: High Desert State Prison/ Susanville, CA''
at ''Prison Legal News,'' December 2015, full text of Office of the Inspector General report online 1995 establishments in California Buildings and structures in Lassen County, California Prisons in California {{US-prison-stub
state prison
This is a list of U.S. state prisons (2010) (not including federal prisons or county jails in the United States or prisons in U.S. territories):
* Alabama
* Alaska
* Arizona
* Arkansas
* California
* Colorado
* Connecticut
* Delaware
...
that houses level IV inmates located in Leavitt, Lassen County, California
Lassen County () is a county in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,730. The county seat and only incorporated city is Susanville. Lassen County comprises the Susanville, Cali ...
. Opened in 1995, it has a capacity of 2,324 persons.
As of July 31, 2022, High Desert was incarcerating people at 78.4% of its design capacity, with 1,823 occupants.
Also located in Lassen County is the state California Correctional Center
California Correctional Center (CCC) is a state prison in the city of Susanville in Northern California. It is a minimum-security facility.
Also located in Susanville is the High Desert State Prison (California) (maximum security), and nearby t ...
, a minimum-security prison. A third prison facility, the Federal Correctional Institution, Herlong
The Federal Correctional Institution, Herlong (FCI Herlong) is a medium-security United States federal prison for male inmates in California, opened in 2007. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Departmen ...
, is also located within Lassen County, California
Lassen County () is a county in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,730. The county seat and only incorporated city is Susanville. Lassen County comprises the Susanville, Cali ...
. Half the adult population of nearby Susanville works at these prisons. The prisons and their effects on the community, including as a source of much needed jobs, were explored in the documentary, ''Prison Town, USA
''Prison Town, USA'' is a 2007 documentary film about Susanville, California
Susanville (formerly known as Rooptown) is a town in and the county seat of Lassen County, California, United States. Susanville is located on the Susan River i ...
'' (2007), aired on PBS.
Investigation
In late 2015 the state Office of the Inspector General completed a six-month investigation into conditions at the prison, after complaints of officer misconduct and prisoner abuse, and issued its report, calling for changes at the facility. Although there are buildings to house certain inmates in protective custody, such as sex offenders, officers put other prisoners near them. The prison has had a rapid turnover in top management for nearly a decade, with seven wardens in eight years. In their report investigators wrote there was a "perception of insularity and indifference to inmates" at High Desert, exacerbated by its remoteness and "a labor organization that opposes oversight to the point of actively discouraging members from coming forward with information that could … adversely affect another officer."
Notable inmates
*Ronnie Radke
Ronald Joseph Radke (; born December 15, 1983) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, musician, and record producer best known for being the current lead singer of Falling in Reverse and the former lead singer of Escape the Fate.
Radke r ...
, former Escape the Fate
Escape the Fate is an American rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2004 and originally from Pahrump, Nevada. They are signed to Eleven Seven Music. The group consists of Robert Ortiz (drummer), Craig Mabbitt (lead vocalist), TJ Bell ( ...
singer, convicted of being an accessory in the murder of an 18-year-old in 2006. When he was released from prison in December 2010, he formed a new band called Falling in Reverse
Falling in Reverse is an American rock band based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that formed in 2008 by lead vocalist Ronnie Radke while he was incarcerated. The band's original name was "From Behind These Walls", but it was quickly renamed to Falling ...
* Terry Peder Rasmussen
Terry Peder Rasmussen (December 23, 1943 – December 28, 2010) was an American serial killer. Rasmussen killed at least six people in a series of crimes that spanned decades and stretched across the continental United States. Due to his use of ...
, serial killer, died in the prison in 2010
* Joe Son
Joseph Hyungmin Son ( ko, 손형민; born November 22, 1970) is a South Korean-born American convicted felon and a former mixed martial artist, kickboxer, professional wrestler and actor. Prior to his 2008 arrest, he was best known for his appe ...
, actor in Austin Powers
''Austin Powers'' is a series of American spy action comedy films: '' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'' (1997), '' Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' (1999) and '' Austin Powers in Goldmember'' (2002). The films were produced ...
and convicted rapist
* Joseph Fiorella, one of the rapists and murderers of Elyse Pahler
References
External links
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Official website
''Special Review: High Desert State Prison/ Susanville, CA''
at ''Prison Legal News,'' December 2015, full text of Office of the Inspector General report online 1995 establishments in California Buildings and structures in Lassen County, California Prisons in California {{US-prison-stub