Stabbing, assaults under investigation at troubled Richland County jail
Three people being held at the Richland County jail were assaulted Wednesday night, including a 35-year-old man who was trying to defend another detainee, the sheriff’s department said.
The department issued a news release Thursday afternoon about the violent night at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, a facility off Bluff Road that has been rocked in recent years by inmate violence and deaths.
The news release said two incidents occurred around 6:30 p.m. A third incident occurred about 11 p.m.
In all three cases, the victims were transported to a hospital for treatment for non-life-threatening injuries, the sheriff’s department said.
In one of the 6:30 p.m. incidents, the sheriff’s department said the 35-year-old was attacked by two others as he was trying to protect an older man who was being bullied during a meal. The victim suffered facial injuries.
The victim “felt compelled to step and defend the .... male, and then a fight ensued,’’ an incident report said. The report indicated a “lethal cutting instrument’’ was involved in the fight.
The other 6:30 p.m. incident involved the assault and stabbing of a 26-year-old man. Six to seven detainees at the detention center reportedly attacked the man. He suffered injuries to his body, the sheriff’s department said. During an interview with deputies, the victim said he wanted to press charges against the jail.
In the third incident, which occurred about 11 p.m. Wednesday, a 27-year-old man was assaulted by three others, suffering facial injuries, according to the news release.
An incident report said those accused of assaulting the man “attempted to make him pay rent.’’ The assault occurred after he refused, the report said. An officer said he did not see the assault because it occurred behind a closed door, the incident report said.
The sheriff’s department said no formal charges have been made as the investigation continues.
This week’s violence follows stabbings last weekend at the jail.
Two inmates were stabbed Friday night, a day after federal officials announced a civil rights investigation. A pattern of assaults and poor living conditions has drawn increasing scrutiny to the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, The State reported last week.
The newspaper reported that more than a dozen inmates have been stabbed in recent months. At least six people have died at the jail in the past two years, The State reported.
One of the deaths involved a man who was tortured and beaten by other inmates. The sheriff’s department has found that many cell doors at the jail did not lock properly.
In August, a lawsuit was filed over the death of a detainee who was found in his jail cell, the apparent victim of dehydration. His body was covered in rat bites.
This story has been updated with more detail on the incidents
This story was originally published November 9, 2023 at 8:59 PM.
