By Nick Ferraro
Pioneer Press
STILLWATER, Minn. — Nine staff members of Minnesota Correctional Facility-Stillwater were taken to the hospital Thursday for evaluation after an inmate smoked suspected synthetic marijuana and then a second inmate threw a container with an unknown substance from his cell, Minnesota Department of Corrections officials said.
One staff member was given Narcan after experiencing symptoms, and all but one was transported by paramedics. By Thursday afternoon, all nine had been treated and released. They include six correctional officers, two health services staff and a member of the maintenance staff.
The prison was put lockdown, which will remain in place through Friday, DOC Commissioner Paul Schnell said at a news conference.
According to the DOC, correctional officers responded to a cell just before 8 a.m. on a report of an inmate smoking an unknown substance. One officer experienced an adverse reaction that included lightheadedness, nausea and an increased heart rate. He was taken by ambulance to Lakeview Hospital in Stillwater.
Within a half-hour, two other correctional officers and a maintenance staff member reported experiencing similar reactions and were taken to the hospital. Later, another three officers who had responded to the incident or worked in the living unit began feeling ill, and two were taken to the hospital.
Separately, but in the same housing unit, an inmate threw a container with an unknown substance from his cell that landed near staff. Three staff experienced illness and were also transported to the hospital.
The inmate who was caught smoking the substance told investigators he had smoked a stronger than expected dose of synthetic marijuana, the DOC said.
“While investigators have not completed testing for the specific substance from this incident, recent investigations have identified the presence of MDMB-4en-PINACA, soaked into paper and dried,” the DOC said. “PINACA is an indazole-based synthetic cannabinoid that is often purchased online and can be introduced into the facility through the mail.”
Seeking solution
The DOC and other correctional agencies across the country are using a number of strategies to stop synthetic substances from reaching inmates, including scanning mail through detection equipment. The Minnesota DOC also recently began photocopying mail at three prisons, including the one in Stillwater, as part of a pilot project, Schnell said.
Five ways to implement effective mail screening as part of a comprehensive interdiction strategy:
In June, a 22-year-old inmate was found dead in his cell at the Stillwater prison. Schnell said at the time they believed he ingested synthetic drugs.
“These synthetic substances are particularly dangerous because the chemical properties that comprise them are unknown and uncontrolled,” he said Thursday. “We are prioritizing our investigative efforts to identify and prosecute those responsible for conspiring to introduce these substances into the secure correctional environment.”
Schnell added, “For the safety of our staff, we are reviewing and updating our emergency response protocols to suspected drug use incidents.”
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