Oregon State Penitentiary (OSP), sometimes called

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

State Prison, is a maximum security prison in the

northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each s ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

in Salem, Oregon. Originally opened in Portland in 1851, it relocated to Salem fifteen years later. The 2,242-capacity prison is the oldest in the state; the all-male facility is operated by the

Oregon Department of Corrections The Oregon Department of Corrections is the agency of the U.S. state of Oregon charged with managing a system of 12 state prisons since its creation by the state legislature in 1987. In addition to having custody of offenders sentenced to prison ...

(ODOC). OSP contains an intensive management wing, which is being transformed into a psychiatric facility for mentally ill prisoners throughout Oregon.

History

Prior to the construction of prisons in Oregon, many convicted of crimes were either hanged or pardoned. Oregon State Penitentiary was originally built in Portland in 1851. Operating this facility proved difficult because it spanned two blocks, with a city street running through the middle. In 1859, the facility was leased to private contractors ( Robert Newell and L. N. English), who instituted a system of prison labor. This new system led to many escapes. In 1866, the state officially moved the penitentiary to a site in Salem, enclosed by a reinforced concrete wall averaging in height. The prison also began using a device called the "Gardner shackle" (later called the "Oregon Boot"), a heavy metal device attached to prisoners' legs to impede movement. Flogging

Escapes continued at the new facility, despite the wall and the Boot. The most famous of these occurred in 1902, when

Harry Tracy Harry Tracy (23 October 1875 - 6 August 1902) was an outlaw in the American Old West. Biography His real name was Harry Severns, Tracy is said to have run with Butch Cassidy and the Hole in the Wall Gang, but there is no evidence to this claim. ...

and David Merrill killed three guards with a gun. Details about this period can be read in ''Thirteen Years in Oregon State Penitentiary'', a book written by Joseph "Bunko" Kelly. Kelly describes scenes of extreme brutality, particularly floggings, which he recounts happening to whites, blacks, Indians, and a Chinese "half boy and half woman". He describes negligent doctors and a lack of mental health care, and complains that whiskey drinking affects the behavior of the guards. He also identifies a five-year period in which the warden stopped newspaper deliveries to prevent convicts from learning of pardons. The prison announced in 1904 that it would end the use of flogging, and instead punish prisoners by spraying them with cold water from a garden hose. The prison experimented briefly in 1917–1918 with an "honor system" in which 130 prisoners were paroled with certain conditions. The prisoners were released into jobs outside the prison during the daytime. After 66 of these absconded, Governor James Withycombe announced that he would find a way for them to work jobs within the prison facility. In the 1920s, the Penitentiary created a flax plant which employed more than half of its inmates. Inmates worked on construction and in the fields, and were paid $0.50–$1.00 per day. The plant was touted nationally as a way to make the prison financially self-sustaining, and to rehabilitate prisoners by giving them something to do and preparing them to work. In 1925, OSP had the largest flax scutching mill in the world, with 175 workers producing 100–150 tons of flax per day. With assistance from the federal Bureau of Education, OSP ran a unique and successful adult education program during the same era. With

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholi ...

in effect, 80 of the prison's 575 inmates at this time were moonshiners. Nine prisoners were shot in a 1926 riot beginning in the prison cafeteria. Seven hundred inmates were involved in a riot on August 1, 1936, in response to a court ruling that made it more difficult for prisoners to be released after serving their minimum sentence. The riot was put down by armed guards; one prisoner, Thomas Baughn, was killed and two were wounded. After being deprived of their weapons (and of food, in punishment), prisoners began to break windows and throw projectiles from their cells. Inmates at OSP attempted a mass escape in December 1951, after receiving weapons from a sympathetic guard. The plan was foiled by an informant, John Edward Ralph, who was quickly transferred to Folsom Prison for his own protection. Unrest continued through 1952 with civil disobedience and more escape attempts. Over 1300 prisoners conducted an eight-day hunger strike in August to protest alleged brutality of a guard named Morris Race. In October 1952, an escape attempt involving armed conflict with guards was suppressed with gunfire. On January 1, 1953, prison officials announced the discovery of an escape tunnel being dug by prisoner Robert Green. The tunnel was 12 feet underground and 50 feet long, reaching within 15 feet of the world outside OSP walls. A major insurrection erupted in July 1953 when prisoners stopped working, on strike for better food and medical care. They barricaded themselves in the cafeteria. Under instructions from Warden Clarence T. Gladden, guards used tear gas to prevent the prisoners from reaching food supplies. The angry prisoners gained control of most of the prison and started fires in the flax plant, laundry room, tailor room, and machine shop. Ultimately the prisoners were subdued by guards with tear gas, shotguns, and rifles. 1100 Rebels were confined to a baseball diamond without food or water, with Warden Gladden saying they would stay there until "I am sure they are repentant". They stayed on the diamond for two days and one night, until twenty ringleaders identified by prison authorities were surrendered, and prisoners agreed to be individually searched."1,000 Convicts End Revolt At State Prison In Oregon", ''Baltimore Sun'', July 13, 1953, p. 1; accesse
via ProQuest
In what may have been the first

sex reassignment surgery Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and a ...

officially conducted in a prison, a DMAB prisoner changed her sex to female, through

surgery Surgery ''cheirourgikē'' (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via la, chirurgiae, meaning "hand work". is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pa ...

and

hormones A hormone (from the Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs by complex biological processes to regulate physiology and behavior. Hormones are required ...

, in a period prior to release in 1965. Discontent continued in the 1960s. The public became aware that only 200 of the 1200 inmates at OSP actually had sentences calling for maximum security incarceration; yet all inmates were treated according to maximum security standards. Prisoners continued to complain about medical care, dental care, and visitation rights. Unrest culminated in March 1968, in an uprising which began with a surprise takeover of the prison's control center. 700 prisoners took control of the facility, started a fire in the flour shop, and held 40 guards and prison employees hostage. The hostages were freed after prison officials announced the resignation of Warden Gladden (then 73 years old), as well as immunity for the rioters. Prisoners were criticized for damaging facilities that supported them. Ron Schmidt, press secretary of Governor

Tom McCall Thomas Lawson McCall (March 22, 1913 January 8, 1983) was an American statesman, politician and journalist in the state of Oregon. A Republican, he was the state's thirtieth governor from 1967 to 1975. A native of Massachusetts, McCall grew ...

, said: "It's pure devastation. The men destroyed everything that was of any benefit to them." Two inmates were stabbed during the riot: Delmar DuBray, 30, was stabbed in the right kidney; Melvin Newell, 36, was stabbed in the abdomen and groin. In November 1968, a work stoppage by 81 prisoners in the laundry room was controlled by guards with clubs, and the prisoners placed in isolation Also in 1968, OSP inmates founded UHURU, an organization dedicated to Afro-American culture, history, and community service. Although the prison establishment was skeptical at first, UHURU gained official support and had a membership of several hundred in 1982. OSP prisoners were politically active in the following decades, holding forums on politics and communicating with the Oregon NAACP. OSP began to recruit African American staff in 1981 in response to pressure from activist black prisoners. In September 1988, 28 female inmates at the Oregon Correctional Center staged a sit-down protest that prison Superintendent Robert H. Scheidler described as the first of its kind in the facility's history. On October 1, between four and eight women staged a hunger strike—inmate Jody Bedell fasted for 24 days before ending the strike. Both the sit-down protest and hunger strike were meant to call attention to overcrowding, poor medical care, inadequate education programs and the shortage of showers and laundry machines. At the time, the prison was built for 80 women but was housing over 140 women and had only one shower for every 43 inmates. The women who participated in the hunger strike were ordered to spend a year in a segregation unit and were fined $214. In May 2020, ODOC announced that the state will close its death row. On December 13, 2022, Governor

Kate Brown Katherine Brown (born June 21, 1960) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 38th governor of Oregon since 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, she served three terms as the state representative from the 13th district of the ...

commuted the death sentences of everyone on Oregon's death row to life without parole. She also instructed the Department of Corrections to dismantle the state's death chamber.

Facility and programs

The prison is located on of land in the southeast of Salem, Oregon. The facility itself consists of , surrounded by a wall which is patrolled by armed correctional officers.Jessica Rondema,
Oregon State Penitentiary
, ''The Oregon Encyclopedia'', c. May 2011. Most housing in the penitentiary is in large cell blocks with most inmates housed in single man cells that have been converted to double man cells to increase capacity. The penitentiary also has a full service infirmary.

Intensive Management Unit

Oregon State Penitentiary was the site of Oregon's first supermax unit, the "Intensive Management Unit" (IMU), constructed in 1991. The 196-bed self-contained Intensive Management Unit provides housing and control for male inmates who disrupt or pose a substantial threat to the general population in all department facilities. In 2006, this facility held 147 people (out of a total of 784 across Oregon) in

solitary confinement Solitary confinement is a form of imprisonment in which the inmate lives in a single cell with little or no meaningful contact with other people. A prison may enforce stricter measures to control contraband on a solitary prisoner and use additi ...

. Conditions in the IMU were the object of public criticism, triggered particularly by multiple suicide of mentally ill prisoners.Mary Beth Pfeiffer,
Mentally ill inmates need more help
, ''Portland Oregonian'', February 12, 2005. Former warden Brian Belleque also expressed doubts about the possibility of rehabilitation in the IMU, saying: "We realize that 95 to 98 percent of these inmates here are going to be your neighbor in the community. They are going to get out." Prisoners in the OSP IMU were moved in 2009 to

Snake River Correctional Institution Snake River Correctional Institution (SRCI) is a medium security prison in the western United States in eastern Oregon. The largest facility in the Oregon Department of Corrections system, it is located in unincorporated northeastern Malheur Cou ...

in Ontario, Oregon.Sal Rodriguez,
Total Isolation': Solitary Confinement in Oregon
, ''Solitary Watch'', September 11, 2012. In 2010, ODOC began to convert the IMU into a psychiatric facility, which will serve mentally ill prisoners from across Oregon. Some advocates for the mentally ill have argued that the IMU facility is not suitable for treating the mentally ill because it is "dark" and "crowded", and generally designed for solitary confinement.

Death row

OSP was the site of death row in Oregon and contained the

lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium solution) for the express purpose of causing rapid death. The main application for this procedure is capital puni ...

chamber where prisoners were executed.James Pitkin,
Killing Time:Dead Men Waiting on Oregon’s Death Row
, ''Willamette Week'', January 23, 2008. Governor

John Kitzhaber John Albert Kitzhaber (born March 5, 1947) is an American former politician who served as the 35th governor of Oregon from 1995 to 2003, and as the 37th governor of Oregon from 2011 until his resignation in 2015. A member of the Democratic Party ...

announced an official moratorium on executions in November 2011. In May 2020, ODOC announced that the state will close its death row. On December 13, 2022, Governor Kate Brown commuted the death sentences of everyone on Oregon's death row to life without parole and instructed the Department of Corrections to dismantle the state's death chamber. Executions in Oregon were conducted in public by counties until 1902, when they were centralized (and made less spectacular) at the State Penitentiary. Since the US Supreme Court reaffirmed the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

in '' Gregg v. Georgia'' (1976), Oregon has executed only two people:

Douglas Franklin Wright Douglas Franklin Wright (March 25, 1940 – September 6, 1996) was an American serial killer who murdered at least seven people between 1969 and 1991. He was sentenced to death for three of these murders and was executed in 1996 at the Oregon S ...

, in 1996, and

Harry Charles Moore Harry Charles Moore (May 5, 1941 – May 16, 1997) was an American convicted murderer who was executed in Oregon for the 1992 murders of Thomas Lauri and Barbara Cunningham. He was the second person executed by the state of Oregon since 1978 and ...

, in 1997.

Hospice

Oregon State Penitentiary is home to a

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life b ...

, which is staffed by volunteers from among the prison population. The current incarnation of the hospice began in 1999, and won "Program of the Year Award" from the National Commission on Correctional Health Care in 2001. The OSP hospice was at the forefront of a national trend of prison hospices—reacting to increased prison deaths resulting from the HIV/AIDS epidemic and from harsher sentencing laws. The program's volunteer-based structure has served as a model for other institutions.

Minimum security annex

Oregon State Penitentiary has a separate minimum security facility located on its grounds. It was first opened in 1964 as Oregon's first women's prison,Zaitz, Les.
Oregon to close prison, lay off 63 workers in $2.5 million budget cut
" ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 18 ...

''. Thursday September 30, 2010. Updated on Friday October 1, 2010. Retrieved on November 2, 2010. and was called Oregon Women's Correctional Center. In 2010, the state closed the minimum security annex.

Criticism and legal actions

Prisoners and advocates have charged the OSP system with racism, saying that the system discriminates against black inmates—both by placing them in worse conditions and by failing to protect them from racially motivated violence. They cite the case of Pete Wilson, a black prisoner who was stabbed by ten white inmates while white guards looked on. Black inmates also charged the OSP library with showing racial bias in access and employment. One black inmate described their opinion on the causes and effects of this bias:

Black and other minorities at OSP have an acute problem with the librarian when it comes to their gaining access to courts. First we recognize racism is an ingrained traditional attitude. And second, prisons are reflections of those views. Therefore, Blacks and others in their own wherewithal struggle towards the path of freedom through redress in our courts. But quite often the librarian tries to preclude these efforts in many different ways. Such as telling prisoners his notary seal is broken and of course this tactic will go on for two or three weeks until one of the counselors puts a stop to it, being that if the librarian doesn't notarize documents they will have to do his job.

Prisoners have accused OSP guards of homophobia, censoring homosexual materials in the men's prison and contact among inmates in the women's prison (closed in 2010). In 1982, prisoners filed a class-action lawsuit against the prison, charging that their rights to receive mail were being violated. In particular, they charged prison officials with censoring the mail by withholding "not approved" material, including material related to homosexuality. District Judge Owen Panner decided for the prisoners and the ACLU, ruling that blacklisting certain publications and materials (including those related to homosexuality) violated the First and Fourteenth Amendment rights of the prisoners. However, some advocates believed that the legal ruling would have little effect. Carole Pope, a former prisoner at OSP, said: "We've had five major law suits. After each one, there was a token change, then it went back to the way it was. They rison officialsdon't take any of this seriously."Jil Clark, "Court Bars Prison Censorship of Periodicals", ''Gay Community News'' 10 (38), April 16, 1983; accesse
via ProQuest
In 1977, three inmates (two current and one former) filed a lawsuit alleging that they had been harmed by medical experiments using drugs and radiation. The experiments were voluntary and affected 67 prisoners, who were paid $125 each.

In popular culture

Oregon State Prison appears in the opening scene of the 2001 film

Bandits Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, and murder, either as an ...

, during an escape scene in which the two protagonists forcibly break out of the prison and then proceed on a bank robbing spree. The "Gardner shackle" (later called the "Oregon Boot") is featured in the March 16, 1960, episode of

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings ...

, "The Alexander Portlass Story", and in the January 27, 1957, episode of

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was r ...

, "The Manacled."

Notable inmates

''List of inmates (with dates of incarceration) at Oregon State Penitentiary'': * Richard Laurence Marquette (1961–1973, since 1975) * Randall Woodfield (since 1981) – "The I-5 Killer"; injured at OSP in 1983;Domestic News.

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 2 ...

, October 3, 1983, Monday, AM cycle. filed suit (unsuccessfully) in 1987 against author Ann Rule for publishing a libelous account of his caseTims, Dana. Murderer's libel suit dismissed. ''

'', January 18, 1988. *Gary Haugen (since 1981) – killed David Polin, another OSP inmate, in 2003Cliff Collins,
Continuing the Death Penalty Discussion: How some Oregon lawyers are grappling with capital punishment
, ''Oregon State Bar Bulletin'', November 2012. *

Dayton Leroy Rogers Dayton Leroy Rogers (born September 30, 1953) is an American serial killer who has been tied to the murders of seven women. He preferred "street" women, usually addicts, sex workers, and runaways. The bodies of six of the women were found at a dum ...

(since 1989) – serial killer linked to the murders of seven women * Colt Lyerla – former college football player *Bradly Morris Cunningham (since 1995) – serving a life sentence for murdering his ex-wife and mother of his three sons Cheryl Keeton. True crime writer and author Ann Rule wrote a best selling book titled "Dead by Sunset" in the year 1995. The book focused on Bradly and Cheryl's bitter divorce and custody battle over their sons as well as Bradly's murder of Cheryl. A made-for-television movie also titled "Dead by Sunset" premiered on the

MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...

television network in the year 1995 too. The film was based on Anne Rule's book. Bradly also wrote and published an ebook titled "Ann Rule Deconstructed". In his ebook, Bradly accused Anne Rule of being a liar and having exaggerated with regards to her "Dead By Sunset" book. *

Keith Hunter Jesperson Keith Hunter Jesperson (born April 6, 1955) is a Canadian-American serial killer who murdered at least eight women in the United States during the early 1990s. He was known as the "Happy Face Killer" because he drew smiley faces on his many le ...

(since 1995) – the "Happy Face Killer" *

Christian Longo Christian Michael Longo (born January 23, 1974) is a convicted murderer who killed his wife and three children in Oregon. Background Originating from Ypsilanti Township, Michigan, Longo married Mary Jane Baker at age 19 and had three children ...

(since 2003) – murdered his wife and three children *Michael David Dunn (since 2014) – the perpetrator of the Murder of Jordan Davis *William Perry Jackson – murdered five people with two accomplices during robberies in Washington and Oregon between May and August 1980.

Former inmates

* Hank Vaughan (1865–1870) – moved with the prison from Portland to Salem, narrowly avoiding a lynch mob; paroled early for good behavior, moved to Nevada, and became a blacksmith * Joseph "Bunko" Kelly (1895–1908) – released; author of
Thirteen Years In The Oregon Penitentiary
' *

(1901–1902) – escaped, committed suicide when threatened with capture *

Carl Panzram Charles "Carl" Panzram (June 28, 1891 – September 5, 1930) was an American serial killer, spree killer, mass murderer, rapist, child molester, arsonist, robber, thief, and burglar. In prison confessions and in his autobiography, Panzram ...

(1915–1918) – escaped, assumed a false identity, committed more crimes, captured in 1928 in Washington, D.C., incarcerated at USP Leavenworth and executed there in 1930 * Albert Rosser (1938, 1939–1943) – held then released with a stay, facing a 12-year sentence from the Oregon Supreme Court; imprisoned in 1939; released after minimum sentence of four years with good behavior; secretary of the Oregon teamsters, dubbed a "labor terrorist" and convicted of complicity with arson at the West Salem Box plant; delivered testimony while imprisoned for the

Harry Bridges Harry Bridges (28 July 1901 – 30 March 1990) was an Australian-born American union leader, first with the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA). In 1937, he led several chapters in forming a new union, the International Longshore an ...

trial * John Omar Pinson (1947–1959) – paroled after six years of good behavior; accused of killing police officer Delmond E. Rondeau and setting fire to the flax plant in 1949; profiled on the television show ''Gang Busters!'' *

Gary Gilmore Gary Mark Gilmore (born Faye Robert Coffman; December 4, 1940 – January 17, 1977) was an American criminal who gained international attention for demanding the implementation of his death sentence for two murders he had admitted to committing ...

(1962, 1964–1972, 1972–1975) – released to halfway house, quickly convicted of new crimes, re-incarcerated, transferred to USP Marion for bad behavior, paroled to Utah in April 1976, committed multiple murders in July 1976, executed in January 1977 * Jerry Brudos (1969–2006) – died of liver cancer; OSP's longest-term resident *Randal Krager (1992–1994, 1995–1996) – released, re-arrested, pardoned; founded Volksfront in 1994 while incarcerated *

(1993–1997) – executed by lethal injection *

Bobby Jack Fowler Bobby Jack Fowler (June 12, 1939 – May 20, 2006) was an American rapist and suspected murderer who was active in the United States and Canada from 1973 to 1995. He died in prison of lung cancer during a 16-year sentence following a convict ...

(1996–2006) – connected to the Highway of Tears murders, died in prison of lung cancer * George Hayford (1858–?), attorney and swindler * Diane Downs – convicted in the 1983 shooting of her three children, transferred to Clinton Correctional Facility for Women after her 1987 escape * John Arthur Ackroyd – Died in December 2016 * Sebastian Shaw – Died in October 2021

References

Bibliography

* Hubert Howe Bancroft,
History of Oregon Vol. II: 1848-1888
'', San Francisco: The History Company, 1888. * Joseph "Bunko" Kelly,

', 1908

External links

*
ODOC official site
{{Authority control Prisons in Oregon Buildings and structures in Salem, Oregon Capital punishment in Oregon Execution sites in the United States 1851 establishments in Oregon Territory