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St Louis inmates riot again, set fires and throw objects out broken windows as they yell ‘we wanna go to court’

The inmates were heard shouting 'We wanna go to court,' referring to delays in court appearances and trials because of Covid-19, from the third floor of the facility after the disturbance broke out. A similar uprising happened at the facility in February

ST LOUIS, MISSOURI: Several prisoners at St Louis’ City Justice Center reportedly fled their cells on Sunday night, April 4, broke windows, yelled and threw debris on the street below, which included furniture, a computer, toilet paper, and their own clothing. Inmates also set fire to objects and threw them out of the windows. The inmates were heard shouting “We wanna go to court,” referring to delays in court appearances and trials because of Covid-19, from the third floor of the facility after the disturbance broke out at around 9 pm. It has also been said that nearly 50 to 75 people on the street were also protesting what they dubbed "inhumane conditions" at the jail.

Journalist Alexis Zoros tweeted a video of the incident as she wrote, “BREAKING: Inmates at the City Justice Center have once again broken windows. From a city spokesperson: We are aware of the disturbance on the third floor of the CJC and that authorities are responding accordingly. @KMOV.” Later, CBS News by way of its KMOV-TV affiliate reported that the situation at the facility was brought under control after one and a half hours. But again at around 11 pm, prisoners went to the southwest corner of the building and threw things, including a large plastic chair. However, after 30 minutes, things again seemed to be back in control as officers in riot gear appeared.

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A number of videos of the disturbance were shared on Twitter. The more poignant tweets were from Khalea (@314khalea), whose Twitter profile says, “organizer in stl ... liberation for all oppressed people.” In one of her posts, she wrote, “Uprising at the STL city jail they yellin ‘help us’.” Another tweet read from her read, “as long as prisons and the police exist, people will continue to uprise. we all deserve to be free and that means abolishing the prison industrial complex.” She also mentioned another similar kind of “uprising” that happened at the facility in February in her post.

The link of the Facebook post, which Khalea shared in her tweet stated, “Sometime in the early morning the inmates at the St. Louis Justice center stage an act of civil disobedience because of the inhumane treatment by CJC Management concerning Covid-19 along with other issues. Expo-Stl [EX-Incarcerated People Organizing] was made aware that more than 50 inmates participated in a peaceful protest that took place on December 29th. Nothing was done to address those issues and this mornings uprising was the natural evolution of the actions of living and feeling human beings.”

In a statement on Monday, April 5, Tishaura Jones, Treasurer of St Louis, said she is “horrified and deeply frustrated by the cries for help coming from those being held within the City Justice Center.” Jones also added that there "is an immediate need for change in our city’s justice system," and that a "clear chain of command" is required. Alderman Cara Spencer also said, “It's clear that the city is failing to ensure that staff and the city residents incarcerated there are safe.” She continued that she is devoted to the “competent and humane administration” of the facility.

Meanwhile, several people on Twitter reacted to the protest as one user said, “This is the second protest in a few months there. I've unfortunately been in this jail 13 years ago for WEED!  I can confirm it's corrupt and the living conditions were unacceptable then,I can only imagine how bad they are now.” Another user wrote, “Some of them are probably stuck on minor charges and are just being held until their court date. Either way, if it got this bad, it means the inmates have been suffering abuses for a very long time.” “This happened at the start of corona, too. And another time it happened once when the power went out, and they were freezing. STL has an awful segregation problem. Rich suburbs. Awful, neglected inner city. Tale as old as Truman,” a tweet read.