Yearend Coverage Late Entry: Riot shuts down Sask. Pen
When 185 medium-security inmates were released from their cells for a work shift Dec. 14, tensions were already running high within the Saskatchewan Penitentiary.
The prisoners, specifically the kitchen staff, had recently lodged numerous complaints about the institution’s meals, specifically the small portion sizes. The complaints had evolved into a protest and food deliveries to the federal prison had been missed as a result.
Penitentiary administrators made some changes to the inmate’s routine in response to the protests, but couldn’t have anticipated the violence and destruction which would still be unleashed.
The trouble started when the inmates refused to go to work.