Source: MSNBC/WMAQ
Pubdate: Tue, 21 Jul 1998
Author: Phil Rogers

PRISON CAUGHT IN SURPRISE DRUG SWEEP

JOLIET, July 21 - Inmates at the Joliet Correctional Facility were moved
from their cells and tested for drugs during a full-scale surprise prison
drug sweep this morning.

The raids started at 6:30 AM with a massive show of force. Without warning,
235 correctional officers from throughout the state were posted outside
each cell. Each inmate was handcuffed, then all were rousted from their
beds. The galleries and every cell were evacuated.

At that, the tactical teams swept in, searching for drugs, weapons, and
anything else that didn't belong. Dogs were brought in to sniff for drugs,
but because the dogs can't find everything, officers turned every cell
inside out, trying to make sure that no potential hiding place was left
unchecked.

Personal belongings were searched, and the walls and ceilings were examined
for secret compartments. Guards even X-rayed the bedding, searching for
contraband.

Officials say the cells may be small, but the hiding places are infinite.
"They could take the guts out of [the mattress]. If they've got any type of
contraband or anything, they could stuff it up inside," said one officer.

While all this was going on inside, the inmates were hustled outside to the
prison gymnasium, where drug tests were conducted on the spot. Special cups
monitored for marijuana, cocaine, or PCP. A special machine screened
clothing for drug residue.

It goes without saying that if the public likes such initiatives, the
inmates do not. "Even if they do find something, it isn't going to stop
nothing that goes on in these joints," said one prisoner.

But the prison staff would argue that point, contending that if nothing
else, the raid left the inmates with a clear message. "They need to know
that...we will come in and do what we need to do," said warden Lamark
Carter.

The inmates do not have a Fourth Amendment right governing searches and
seizures.

The Joliet facility, housing 1,215 inmates, was built in 1860, making it
the state's oldest prison. Previously this year, similar raids were
conducted at the state prisons in Galesburg and Mount Vernon.

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Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)