BISMARCK (AP) -- Prisoners could face disciplinary action after a fight involving homemade weapons and a lockdown at the state penitentiary, the warden says.
Warden Tim Schuetzle said the lockdown was ordered after a fight during recreation time Thursday night. The lockdown ended about noon Sunday, after a search turned up weapons made of plastic and wood, and other contraband, he said.
"We just secure everyone in their cells, let any tensions cool down, and then the staff has more time on their hands when they can go and do these searches and try to clean up the facility, and that's what we've been doing," Schuetzle said.
On Thursday, authorities found an inmate had made weapons out of plastic, Schuetzle said. That night, a fight broke out in the recreation yard. A wooden dowel that had been sharpened like a pencil was found, Schuetzle said.
"During our shakedown, we found another similar item -- shorter but of the same material, in one of the inmate's cells," he said.
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The inmates involved face possible disciplinary segregation, meaning up to 15 days at a time in an isolated cell, Schuetzle said. They also could be put in administrative segregation, a special management unit for prisoners who are considered a threat to themselves or others.
The penitentiary in Bismarck runs between 510 and 520 prisoners, Schuetzle said. The weekend lockdown affected about 365 inmates, mainly those who had access to the recreation yard, he said.
The prison generally has had no major problems involving assaults with weapons, the warden said.
"We maybe come across one or two a year, but my suspicion is that it's so rare that we ever any assaults with weapons, and we want to keep it that way," he said.
The latest incident could involve gangs, Schuetzle said. Lockdowns have been ordered at the penitentiary about once a year over the past four years, Schuetzle said.
"You need to have some good justification of why you are trying to do this," the warden said. "This was a pretty bold move right in the recreation yard. To us, it was just something we needed to respond to.
"The search didn't prove to find a lot of weapons. We found a lot of contraband, did a lot of housecleaning," he said. The contraband included extra clothing, blankets, pillows and towels that inmates had accumulated, he said.
"Some facilities go on lockdown for months," Schuetzle said. "My philosophy has been that it's certainly a necessary thing for security to do this, but it needs to have a purpose behind it. It really is a lot of extra work for the officers."
