Uprising, The Vaughn 17

On February 1, 2017, inmates took control of The C Building of The James T Vaughn Correctional Center, located in Smyrna Delaware. A storm had been brewing for a long time and on that Wednesday morning, it finally erupted. Four Corrections Staff were taken hostage: Prison Counselor, Patricia May, Guards, Joshua Wilkinson and Winslow Smith, and Sgt. Steven Floyd. As Police tried to regain control of the building, the prison guards fought for their lives inside, uninvolved inmates tried to find safe places, and the world watched helplessly. News Reporters, Police, Protestors, and citizens soon lined the streets outside of the walls of the prison. The standoff lasted for nearly 20 hours. In the end, Patricia May was released unharmed, having been protected by inmates. CO’s Wilkinson and Smith were severely beaten, and Sgt. Floyd was dead. What followed was the arrests and indictments of 18 Men housed in Building C, all charged with the riot, assault, kidnapping, and the murder of Sgt. Floyd. Although, Building C is a maximum-security prison, the facility did not have camera. So, investigators had to rely on the testimony of inmates. The States Star witness was Royal Downs, a former gang leader serving a prison sentence for murder in Baltimore. Downs had been transferred from a prison in Baltimore after inciting a riot and testifying against his gang to receive a reduced sentence. As, the facts of the cases began to unfold, cases began to crumble. The lives of the men involved would never be the same.