UPDATED: Riot Ongoing at Dartmouth Jail
UPDATE No. 2: Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux provided details of the riot that occurred in two housing units of the Bristol County House of Correction earlier today.
“These things can happen at any time, they really can,” Heroux told reporters Friday evening.
“Our No. 1 goal was to de-escalate without a showing of force. We had to do so, but without any injuries to prisoners or corrections officers, so I consider that a win,” he said.
UPDATE: The riot started after inmates in one of the facility's housing units allegedly refused to move, according to an update at 1 p.m. from BCSO spokesman Jonathan Darling.
They were being asked to change units as part of the process to make the facility more suicide-resistant, Darling stated.
DARTMOUTH — Few details have been released about an ongoing riot at the Bristol County House of Corrections in Dartmouth this morning.
Multiple anonymous sources reported what one called a "full-blown riot" ongoing at the jail just before 10 a.m. Friday, with unconfirmed reports that Dartmouth Fire District 3 has responded to a fire at the facility.
"We have an incident going on with inmates in one of the housing units," Bristol County Sheriff's Office spokesman Jonathan Darling confirmed to WBSM News at the time.
Darling said in a release later that members of the office are "still gathering details."
A briefing from Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux is expected at some point at the facility later today.
No further details have been disclosed.
Just one week ago, videos of a 2020 incident in a different unit at the Dartmouth jail facility were released to the public.
That unit — formerly the ICE detention facility — has since been closed.
This is a developing story and will be updated with more information as it becomes available.
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