Peninsula Daily News news sources
CLALLAM BAY — An inmate serving a life sentence at Clallam Bay Corrections Center injured three correctional officers who responded when he refused to enter his cell Saturday night, officials said.
The incident began when the inmate, identified as Steven M. Eggers, 35, refused to enter his cell and threatened correctional officers who were working on the unit floor.
A response team was sent in and Eggers punched one officer in the nose. Two other officers were cut and bruised as they secured the unit, state Department of Corrections spokesman Chad Lewis told KOMO-TV.
After Eggers was subdued, he was taken to the prison’s maximum-security unit and locked up, Lewis said.
The prison’s medical staff treated the officers’ injuries. The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office responded and conducted a criminal investigation.
Eggers’ unit was placed on lockdown after the incident by prison Superintendent Ron Fraker.
Last week, Clallam Bay Corrections Center came off a prison-wide lockdown put in place June 29 when the staff stopped an escape attempt by two other inmates. One of those inmates was shot dead by a correctional officer as the prisoner attempted to burst through a prison fence with a hijacked forklift while the other held a guard hostage with a pair of scissors from the prison industries area.
Eggers will remain in a maximum-security unit while prison investigators interview staff members and offenders. Eggers could also face criminal charges of custodial assault, Lewis said.
Before Saturday’s incident, Eggers had been in a close-custody unit, which is the second-highest security level at Clallam Bay.
Eggers is serving a life sentence for a 1996 first-degree aggravated murder conviction in Snohomish County.
Clallam Bay Corrections Center houses about 850 offenders in medium-, close- and maximum-security units.
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KOMO is a news partner of the Peninsula Daily News. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
