'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' elder inmates' hands-off approach leads to illegal activities among young convicts

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' divides inmates in two groups
PUBLISHED APR 10, 2024
'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates Randy Randall and Eastside's differing opinions create chaos (@netflix)
'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates Randy Randall and Eastside's differing opinions create chaos (@netflix)

LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS: Netflix's 'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' divided the young and the old inmates into groups which created chaos. The inmates had conflicts in their opinions as the younger prisoners wanted to enjoy the newly found freedom but the old convicts wanted everyone to follow the rules.

Netflix's Randy Randall tried his best to unite the inmates and asked them to follow the rules. However, the younger inmates didn't want to listen to anyone and as a result, Randy took a step back from his responsibilities which was to distribute the food trays equally. However, other older inmates followed Randy and tried to just sit back and observe the chaos.

The younger inmates started stealing food trays to make alcohol. Additionally, they joined hands and took the risk of stealing batteries from the wall clock to smoke dope. Randy was furious and concerned that their illegal activities could lead to the removal of Sheriff Eric Higgins' social experiment but he opted to stay away from the matter.

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates (@netflix)
'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates (@netflix)

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates' smoke turns on fire alarm

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' younger inmates' enjoyment soon turned into havoc as the smoke pushed the fire alarm. Deputy Madrigal soon broke in and investigated what turned on the fire alarm. The tension escalated among the prisoners as most of them were high. The deputy found the wicks and said, "Apparently, they were smoking coffee sticks and possibly tobacco."

Meanwhile, Arkansas inmate Crooks was furious over the young convicts and admitted, "You got this f*****g alarm going off... cause you're dealing with a bunch of criminal kids who got nothing to lose. All they're doing in there is smoking."

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates' smoke turns on fire alarm (@netflix)
'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates' smoke turns on fire alarm (@netflix)

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' inmates return to 23-hour lockdown

After the smoke and wicks drama, the 'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' sheriff Eric Higgins put the social 'program on pause'. He sent a team to do a complete shakedown and found out what else was in the units. 

Despite the inmates trying to flush down the wicks, the deputy found the hooch from Eastside's pod. He claimed that he normally tried to hide the hooch in the shower but he had no time. The police officials also found pills and contraband. After the shakedown, the inmates returned to their 23-hour lockdown.

Sheriff Higgins was disappointed with the inmates and claimed, "I really thought that they were moving forward." He added, "But if we found the drugs and the hooch and the wick, normally I would remove the individuals who are not working to improve the unit, but we're trying to do something new." The sheriff put the inmates on lockdown for a day to think about their future.

Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins became the county's first African-American sheriff in history (YouTube/Netflix)
Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins implements lockdown for a day (@netflix)

'Unlocked: A Jail Experiment' is now available to stream on Netflix

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