MCCC on Lockdown Due to Inmate Disturbance. Situation Under Control

Maui Community Correctional Center. Photo by Wendy Osher.

By Maui Now Staff

A lockdown was initiated at the Maui Community Correctional Center in Wailuku following an inmate disturbance during breakfast this morning, public safety officials said.

The incident was reported at around 6:40 a.m. on Wednesday, April 29, 2015.

Officials with the Department of Public Safety say staff at the facility immediately implemented crisis response procedures to peacefully end the situation within a half-hour.

Authorities say the inmates were sent back, and returned to their cells without incident, and a lockdown was initiated. No injuries were reported, and officials say, at no time was the public at risk. The cause of the disturbance remains under investigation.

The module where this happened has a total double-cell capacity of 48 inmates; however, DPS officials have confirmed that the current headcount in that module is 81 inmates.

“We make no secret of the fact that our facilities are overcrowded. Our correctional staff immediately went into action to de-escalate the situation, maintaining constant control despite the overcrowded conditions in that module,” said Nolan Espinda, Public Safety Director in a press statement. “They go through extensive crisis response training, they were prepared, and I couldn’t be more proud of them for a job well done”.

The Maui Community Correctional Center houses pre-trial detainees and provides reintegration programs to sentenced felons and parole violators who will be released on Maui at the end of their sentences.