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Washington State Penitentiary

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Not to be confused with Washington State Prison, in Georgia.

Washington State Penitentiary (WSP)
Washington State Penitentiary is located in Washington (state)
Washington State Penitentiary
Location in Washington
LocationWalla Walla
Coordinates46°4′41″N 118°21′32″W / 46.07806°N 118.35889°W / 46.07806; -118.35889Coordinates: 46°4′41″N 118°21′32″W / 46.07806°N 118.35889°W / 46.07806; -118.35889
StatusOperational
Security classMinimum, Medium, Close, Maximum
Capacity2,439
Opened1886
Managed byWashington State Department of Corrections
WardenDonald Holbrook, Superintendent
Street address1313 North 13th Ave.
CityWalla Walla
CountyWalla Walla County
State/provinceWashington
ZIP Code99362
CountryUnited States
Websitewww.doc.wa.gov/corrections/incarceration/prisons/wsp.htm

Washington State Penitentiary (also called the Walla Walla State Penitentiary) is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the second largest prison in the state (after Coyote Ridge Corrections Center) and is surrounded by wheat fields. It opened 135 years ago in 1886, three years before statehood.

It was the site of Washington State's death row and where executions were carried out, until the Washington Supreme Court ruled the state's death penalty statute unconstitutional on October 11, 2018, thereby abolishing capital punishment in the state. Methods for execution were lethal injection and hanging.

Located at 1313 N. 13th Avenue, it is commonly known as "the Walls" among inmates and "The Penn" to the locals. The penitentiary is sometimes known as , from a book with the same title by Ethan Hoffman and John McCoy. Elsewhere within Washington, and also to an extent in the surrounding states, the name Walla Walla is a metonym for the penitentiary. The penitentiary was the subject of the song "Walla Walla" by American punk rock band The Offspring.

History

Washington State Penitentiary opened in 1886, making it the oldest operational prison in Washington state and among the oldest operational prisons in the US.[1] Over a one-year period, starting in March 2002, more than one hundred inmates and staff at the Washington State Penitentiary were infected with Campylobacter jejuni. During this period, five clusters of the infection were identified, and genetic testing indicated that all of the bacteria were indistinguishable from each other. The source of this outbreak is not known, but contamination via pigeon feces, as well as unsafe food handling procedures, were examined.[2][3][clarification needed]

Notable prisoners

  • Kenneth Bianchi, the Hillside Strangler.
  • Terapon "Lee" Adhahn, convicted of rape of several children and rape/murder of a child in Tacoma, Washington.[4]
  • Colton Harris-Moore. Famous thief, known as the "Barefoot Bandit", responsible for over 100 robberies and break-ins.
  • Robert Lee Yates, American serial killer from Spokane. He had also worked at the prison before.[5]
  • Lyle Beerbohm. American professional mixed martial artist who spent over a year in Walla Walla for drug-related crimes.
  • Little Willie John. R&B singer who was sentenced to 8–20 years for manslaughter. Died at Walla Walla on May 26, 1968.[6][7][8]
  • Billy Gohl. Union employee who murdered many sailors, Aberdeen.
  • Linda Hazzard. Doctor known for murdering patients through her detox methods, Olalla, Washington.
  • Kevin Coe. Convicted rapist from Spokane, often referred to in the news media as the "South Hill Rapist."
  • Gary Ridgway. Convicted serial killer in south King County, referred to in the news media as the "Green River Killer."
  • Gerald Friend. Convicted serial rapist and kidnapper, whose crimes after his release served as the inspiration for Nirvana song "Polly".
  • Jack Owen Spillman. American serial killer from Spokane. Known as the "Werewolf Butcher."
  • Henri Young. Convicted bank robber and cause célèbre.
  • William Earl Talbott II. Perpetrator of the murders of Jay Cook and Tanya Van Cuylenborg, and the first case in history to go to trial by jury and achieve a conviction due to genetic genealogy.
  • Joseph McEnroe. Convicted murderer in the 2007 Carnation murders.
  • Christopher Monfort. Convicted in the October 31, 2009 murder of police officer Timothy Brenton. Died at Walla Walla in January 2017.[9]
  • Joseph Kondro. Convicted serial killer in the Longview murders of three girls. Died at Walla Walla in May 2012.
  • Richard Clark. Convicted in the April 1995 murder of seven-year-old Roxanne Doll.
  • William Lembcke. Convicted in the December 2000 Addy murders of his parents and siblings.
  • Ryan Alexander. Convicted in the April 2002 murder of eight-year-old Michael "Mikey" Busby, Jr.
  • Mitchell Rupe. Convicted in the September 1981 murders of two bank tellers during a robbery at Tumwater State Bank in Olympia. Died at Walla Walla in February 2006.
  • Gabriel Gaeta. Convicted in the August 2014 murder of six-year-old Jenise Wright.

Executed

Organization

The penitentiary has five groups:

  • Camp/Minimum: 1-4 Years
  • Protective Custody & Mental Health: 1 Year- Life
  • Medium: 1 Year- Life
  • Close: 1 Year- Life
  • Maximum/Segregation: 1 Year- Life

In Popular Culture

  • "Walla Walla" is the eighth song on The Offspring's 1998 album, Americana. The song is an ode to a friend who, after countless times getting off with a "slap on the wrist", has been sentenced to serve "three to five" years at Walla Walla.
  • The prison was used for the filming of a scene in the Swedish movie Dancer in the Dark.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.doc.wa.gov/facilities/prison/wsp/
  2. ^ Campylobacter Outbreak - Washington State Penitentiary
  3. ^ "Food issues run deep at Washington State Penitentiary".
  4. ^ http://www.courts.wa.gov/content/Briefs/A02/378931%20reply.pdf
  5. ^ CrimeLibrary.com/Serial Killers/Sexual Predators/Robert Lee Yates Jr.: The Search for the Spokane Serial Killer
  6. ^ "Little Willie John is arrested for murder after performing at Seattle's Magic Inn on October 17, 1964. - HistoryLink.org". www.historylink.org. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  7. ^ "Little Willie John". Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  8. ^ Johnson, Gary. "Michigan Rock and Roll Legends - LITTLE WILLIE JOHN". www.michiganrockandrolllegends.com. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  9. ^ Seattle cop killer Christopher Monfort died of drug overdose | The Seattle Times
  10. ^ "Dancer in the Dark filming locations — MovieMaps".

Further reading

  • Murray, Christopher (2016). Unusual Punishment: Inside the Walla Walla Prison 1970-1985. Washington State University Press. ISBN 978-0-87422-339-2.
  • McCoy, John (1986). Concrete Mama: Prison Profiles from Walla Walla (1st ed.). University of Missouri Press. ISBN 978-0-8262-0604-6.
  • Longworth, Arthur (2016). Zek: An American Prison Story (1st ed.). Gabalfa Press. ISBN 978-0-9970-2990-1.

External links

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