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Inmates intervene to help corrections officer during assault at St. Louis City Justice Center

Other inmates assaulted the detainee who struck the female guard with a closed fist during May 8 attack

ST. LOUIS — A female guard and a male inmate at the City Justice Center were taken to the hospital for non-life threatening injuries following an assault there Wednesday.

The Department of Public Safety confirmed that at around 11 a.m., a detainee assaulted a corrections officer with a closed fist while opening a door.

“Other detainees assisted the officer to safety and aided in maintaining separation until CJC staff secured the premises,” according to a statement issued by Monte Chambers, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety. “As a result of the incident, the officer and detainee were transported by EMS to a local area hospital with non-urgent, non-life-threatening injuries.”

EMS records show two medic units responded to the CJC at 12:20 and 12:31 p.m. Wednesday.

A source familiar with the investigation tells 5 On Your Side the female guard suffered facial injuries, and other detainees injured her attacker while getting her to safety.

This incident is just the latest in a series of attacks involving detainees and guards as well as overall security issues in the facility.

Mayor Tishaura Jones appointed Jennifer Clemons-Abdullah to oversee the facility, and she began in September 2021.

Since then, activists and members of the Detention Facilities Oversight Board have called for her resignation or termination

In the first 26 months of her administration, seven inmates died, staff had been attacked multiple times and injured. No policies had been updated or changed.

She took over following riots at the facility made national news as detainees set fires, assaulted guards and threw furniture out of windows.

During an interview with 5 On Your Side in November, Clemons-Abdullah refused to say how many officers the facility needs to be fully staffed, citing security reasons.

She did confirm the vacancies were greater than the 30 to 50 vacancies the facility had when she took over.

A correctional officer was placed on leave at the end of April pending the outcome of an investigation into how a handcuffed prisoner suffered a head injury that required hospitalization.

Charges were filed against two inmates in December who allegedly assaulted a correctional officer after stealing his pepper spray and radio inside the St. Louis City Justice Center in October.

Two inmates attacked a different guard on Aug. 22, stealing his radio, keys and pepper spray and freed about 40 to 50 inmates from their cells.

Clemons-Abdullah called it a “hostage situation,” while an employee who talked to the I-Team called it an “all-out riot.”

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