Prison History and Gallery

History and Events Year Event Gallery > 2004 During FY2004, Phase I of the Ouachita River Correctional Unit, with 316 beds, opened at Malvern. In Phases II and III, an additional 632 beds will be added to the medium-security men’s prison, expected to be completed in 2005. On Jan. 6, convicted murder Charles Singleton was executed by lethal injection at the Cummins Unit for the 1979 death of a Hamburg grocer. He had spent 24 years on death row. The Department received a $3.8 million loan from the Arkansas Development Finance Authority to assist in building new processing plants at its prison farm and to restructure an existing loan. Plans called for using $2 million of the loan to build a new milk processing plant and a meat processing and cold storage facility at the Cummins Unit. The remaining $1.8 million was to be used to restructure a loan the department took out in 1999 to pay for numerous projects. In June 2004, legislators approved funding for a new 200-bed women’s unit at Wrightsville. Legislators first approved the project in 1999 but plans were halted in November 2001 because of budget reductions. 2003 In FY2003, ADC spent approximately $44.11 per day to house each inmate – almost a 4 percent increase over the previous ear. On July 1, 2002, the Department assumed management of the Grimes and McPherson units that had been privately managed by Wackenhut Corrections Corporation. Since opening in January 1998. Convicted murderer Riley Dobi Noel was executed July 9 by lethal injection at the Cummins Unit. The inmate population set a record high when it reached 13,099 in November 2002. More than 1,200 of the inmates were backed up in the county jails due to a lack of prison space. In December, Cummins became the first Arkansas prison to be in continuous operation for 100 years. Cummins received its first inmates by riverboat on Dec. 13, 1902. A century later, it houses nearly 1,800 inmates and is the department’s largest and oldest prison. 2002 Faced with the state’s first budget cuts in 14 years, the ADC trimmed more than $22 million from its operating budget. The 11percent reduction in funding forced a six-month delay in opening the first phase of the new unit being constructed at Malvern and delayed opening 200 beds of the Grimes Unit expansion. Construction for 200 beds for female inmates, was planned at the Wrightsville Unit, but put on hold due to the funding shortfall. More than $1.2 million was paid out to ADC employees in bonuses through the Career Ladder Incentive Program during FY2002 and 451 employees received CLIP promotions. After added emphasis was placed on recruitment and retention, turnover of entry-level correctional officers fell from 42 percent to 37.2 percent. 2001 In August, the name of the Board of Correction and Community Punishment was changed to the Board of Corrections, to reflect the name change of the Department of Community Punishment to the Department of Community Correction. After three and a half years of managing the Grimes and McPherson Units, Wackenhut Corrections Corporation chose not to seek a contract renewal. The ADC assumed management of the facilities in July. Clay King Smith, sentenced to death in Jefferson County on five counts of capital murder, was executed by lethal injection May 8. The rate at which county jails are paid to house state inmates was increased from $25 a day to $28 by the Board of Corrections. To partially fund the increase, the reimbursement rate for Act 309 inmates was trimmed from $25 a day to $15. Kelly Pace was appointed to the Board of Corrections by Governor Mike Huckabee. For the first time, the three units at the Pine Bluff Complex were placed under the supervision of one warden. Institutional Parole Services was transferred from the Department of Correction to the Department of Community Correction. Gate money was increased from $50 to $100 by the Board of Corrections. An inmate search engine was added to the Department’s website, allowing internet visitors to view information and pictures of any ADC inmates. The agency’s Construction and Maintenance Division was named “Best in the Business” by the Association of State Correctional Administrators 2000 The Board of Correction and Community Punishment chose a 400-acre site in Malvern as the location of a medium security prison for males. Originally slated for 760 beds, the facility’s size was increased to 948 beds. Several sections housed in the Central Office, located on Princeton Pike in Pine Bluff, were relocated to the old Brandon House building on East Harding Avenue. The building was renamed the Administration Annex East, and it became the new home of Human Resources and Information Systems. As part of a new 20-year lease agreement with the county, the ADC began major renovations at the Mississippi Work Release Center. The first 156 beds at the Varner Supermax opened. The housing area is the first of its kind in Arkansas, and a federal grant provided 90% of the construction costs. After 20 years in the old Barnes School building, the Training Academy moved next door to the Maximum Security and Tucker Units. In January, the ADC went tobacco-free for staff and inmates. All tobacco products were banned. Citing health and safety concerns, the BCCP implemented the ban after a one-year waiting period. The ban applies to buildings, areas inside perimeter fences and ADC vehicles. Construction of Arkansas’s first lethal electrified fence was completed at the Cummins Unit. The fence, which carries a current of 5,000 volts, was erected using inmate labor. Christina Riggs, convicted of killing her two children, was executed by lethal injection May 2, becoming the first female to be put to death by the State of Arkansas. David Dewayne Johnson was executed by lethal injection December 19. Dr. Mary Parker was selected as the new chair of the Board of Correction and Community Punishment, which also received two new members. Pastor J. Aaron Hawkins of Fayetteville and Bill Ferren of Pine Bluff were appointed to the board by Governor Huckabee. At the Tucker Unit, Department’s last 100-man barracks was to be split into two smaller barracks. As part of its strategic plan and in preparation of performance based budgeting, the ADC developed a new Mission Statement, Guiding Principles and Core Values. Sixty correctional officers were sworn in as certified peace officers, bringing the agency’s total to approximately 100. The Constituent Services Office was created to enhance communication with the family and friends of inmates. 1976 The U.S. Supreme Court declared capital punishment constitutional. Female inmates were moved from the Cummins Unit to the 128-bed Pine Bluff Unit. 1978 A new death chamber was built at the Cummins Unit. 1974 The first work release center, with 60 beds, opened at Benton. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, citing continued shortcomings, ordered Judge J, Smith Henley to retain jurisdiction over the Arkansas prison system. Death Row inmates were moved from the Tucker Unit to the Cummins Unit. Sixty-seven inmates received certificates at the Tucker Unit during the department's first G.E.D. graduation. 1973 Act 279 created the Department of Correction School District. In Holt v. Sarver III, Judge J. Smith Henley, citing continued deficiencies but substantial improvements in prison operations, released the department from his jurisdiction. Petitioner appeals were consolidated into Finney v. Hutto. 1972 The U.S. Supreme Court declared capital punishment to be unconstitutional under existing procedures. The Pine Bluff City council and "Fifty For the Future," a group of business leaders, donated 80 acres for what would become the Pine Bluff Complex. The first prison rodeo was held at the Cummins Unit. 1971 In Holt v. Sarver II, Judge Henley enjoined the prison system from inflicting cruel and unusual punishment on inmates and interfering with their access to court. 1970 In Holt v. Sarver II, Judge Henley ruled the Arkansas prison system unconstituitional--the only one in the nation so judged--and ordered the State Correction Board to present a plan of action. State Police were assigned to the Cummins Unit during a riot sparked by inmate demands for racially segregated housing. Governor Winthrop Rockefeller commuted the sentences of 15 Death Row inmates. 1969 In Holt v. Sarver I, Judge J. Smith Henley declared several aspects of the prison system unconstitutional, issued guidelines and ordered administrators to report corrective actions. 1968 Thomas Murton alleged that human skeletons found at the Cummins Unit were the remains of inmates beaten to death and secretly buried. A medical examiner's investigation did not positively conclude the remains were inmates. Act 50 reorganized the State Penitentiary system into the Arkansas Department of Correction. In Jackson v. Bishop, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the abolishment of corporal punishment. 1966 Governor Orval Faubus ordered an investigation August 19 into allegations of extortion, misuse of state property and inmate drunkenness. Superintendent O.E. Bishop fired all free world employees at Tucker. Severe riots erupted September 5 at the Cummins farm. State Police used tear gas to end a September 14 strike attempt by 144 Cummins inmates. 1965 In Talley v. Stephens, federal Judge J. Smith Henley restricted corporal punishment use until adequate safeguards could be established, enjoined prison officials from interfering with inmate access to courts and required improvements in medical services and care. 1964 Charles Fields was the last inmate executed at Tucker before the death penalty was declared unconstitutional. 1951 Act 351 created a State Reformatory for Women and transferred the functions, powers and duties of the Training School for Girls to the State Penitentiary. White female inmates were moved from the State Farm for Women to the Cummins farm. Black female inmates already were at Cummins and Tucker. 1943 Act 1 created the State Penitentiary Board. 1933 Governor J. Futrell closed "The Walls," and inmates were moved to the Cummins and Tucker farms. The death chamber was relocated to the Tucker farm. 1916 About 4,400 acres were puchased for the Tucker farm. 1902 For $140,000, about 10,000 acres were purchased for the Cummins farm. Inmates occupied the site the same year. 1913 Act 55 authorized a permanent death chamber within the penitentiary system. Lee Sims, convicted of rape, was the first inmate executed by the state. 1899 Legislation relocated the penitentiary to a 15-acre site southwest of Little Rock. The facility, commonly known as "The Walls," opened in 1910. 1867 After the civil war, the penitentiary returned to state control. 1863 The U.S. Army seized the penitentiary and operated it as a civil and military prison. Troops hanged 17 year old David O. Dodd at the penitentiary. 1861 Legislation allowed good time to be awarded to inmates for good behavior. 1839 A 92.41 acre tract was purchased for the first penitentiary at the site of what is now the Arkansas State Capital. 1838 Governor James S. Conway signed legislation establishing the State Penitentiary.   Gallery >