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United States Penitentiary, Allenwood

Coordinates: 41°07′52″N 76°55′37″W / 41.131°N 76.927°W / 41.131; -76.927
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United States Penitentiary, Allenwood
Map
LocationGregg Township, Union County, near Allenwood, Pennsylvania
StatusOperational
Security classMaximum security
Population306 (as of September 2023)
Opened1993
Managed byFederal Bureau of Prisons
WardenHerman Quay
Street addressRT 15, 2 MI N of Allenwood
CityAllenwood
CountyUnion County
State/provincePennsylvania
ZIP Code17810
CountryUnited States of America
Websitehttps://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/alp/

The United States Penitentiary, Allenwood (USP Allenwood) is a maximum security United States federal prison in Pennsylvania. It is part of the Allenwood Federal Correctional Complex (FCC Allenwood) and is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice.

FCC Allenwood is located on US Route 15 in Gregg Township, Union County,[1] near White Deer. It is approximately halfway between the cities of Williamsport and Lewisburg and approximately 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the state capital.[2]

Facility and programs

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USP Allenwood has four two-level housing units each of which consists of four 16-cell ranges around a central dayroom where inmates can congregate during the times they are allowed outside their cells. Most cells house two inmates each. Recreational and counseling facilities are located adjacent to the housing units. The outer perimeter is secured by a double line of fencing with rolled barbed wire on the ground in between the fences. The inner fence is equipped with a perimeter intrusion detection system and a road for patrol vehicles runs along the outer fence. Correction officers man six guard towers at each corner of the security fence and a seventh within the fence.[3][4]

Educational programs include GED, ESL, adult continuing education, vocational training, correspondence classes, and evening college classes. Inmates work in a UNICOR upholstery factory and institutional maintenance jobs such as food service and building repair. Medical, psychological and drug treatment services are also available.[5]

Incidents

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1996 murder

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In April 1996, USP Allenwood inmate David Paul Hammer allegedly strangled fellow inmate Andrew Hunt Marti to death with a piece of homemade cord. Hammer and Marti were cellmates in the Special Housing Unit, where especially violent inmates are held. Writing on a website dedicated to his case in 2001, Hammer could not ‘attribute any motive’ to his actions. Hammer, a career criminal who was serving a 1,200-year sentence for crimes including larceny, shooting with intent to kill, kidnapping and making bomb threats, subsequently pleaded guilty to Marti's murder and was sentenced to death by the electric chair.[6]

The death sentence was vacated in 2006 after a federal judge found that prosecutors withheld evidence during the penalty phase that would have bolstered Hammer's claim that he and Marti were having consensual sex. In July 2014, another federal judge concurred, ruling that a life sentence was appropriate based upon multiple circumstances, including Hammer's acceptance of responsibility and remorsefulness, his extended family history of dysfunction, abuse and mental illness, his mental and emotional impairments and his self-improvement, specifically citing Hammer's writing to at-risk children and counseling them against engaging in criminal conduct.[7]

2005 murder

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On September 28, 2005, USP Allenwood inmates Ritz Williams (47085-008) and Shawn Cooya (48896-008) stabbed a fellow inmate, 50-year-old Alvin Allery, ten times with a homemade knife and repeatedly kicked him in the head and torso, causing Allery's death. Williams and Cooya were already serving lengthy sentences, Williams for murder and Cooya for weapons violations. A subsequent investigation revealed that Williams and Cooya planned the attack in advance. In 2013, Williams and Cooya pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and were sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.[8][9] As of March 2022, Williams is currently incarcerated at USP Victorville and Cooya is at ADX Florence.

2020 attack

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On December 7, 2020, two correctional officers were injured after one was stabbed in the neck and eye by Abdulrahman el Bahnasawy (75868-054), a Canadian convicted of terrorism-related offenses in 2016. Both officers were taken via ambulance to Geisinger Medical Center in Danville and survived, with one losing an eye.[10][11][12][13] In April 2021, El Bahnasawy was transferred to ADX Florence.

Notable inmates

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Inmate name Register number Status Details
Ahmed Ajaj 40637-053 Serving a 114-year sentence; scheduled for release in 2091. Now at USP Coleman[citation needed] Convicted of participating in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing
Mohamud Salad Ali 77992-083 Serving life sentence; currently at USP Atwater[citation needed] Somali pirate leader who pleaded guilty in 2011 to piracy in connection with the 2011 hijacking of the civilian yacht Quest, during which four U.S. citizens were killed[14][15]
Auburn Calloway 14601-076 Serving two life sentences without the possibility of parole; currently at USP McCreary[citation needed] Flight engineer convicted of attempted aircraft piracy, interference with flight crew, and attempted terrorism in the attempted hijacking of a Federal Express flight from Memphis, Tennessee to San Jose, California
Paul Anthony Ciancia 67089-112 Serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole plus 60 years. Currently at USP Victorville Pleaded guilty in 2016 for the 2013 LAX Shooting[16][17]
Louis Daidone 39065-053 Serving life sentence; currently at USP Coleman[citation needed] Former acting boss of the Lucchese Crime Family in New York City; convicted in 2004 of murder, murder conspiracy, racketeering, and loansharking[18]
James Alex Fields Jr. 22239-084 Serving a life sentence; transferred to Allenwood from USP Hazleton in November 2020.[19][20] White supremacist who pleaded guilty in 2019 of 29 federal hate crime charges for using his car to harm counter-protestors during the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing one and injuring up to 19 more.
Gazi Ibrahim Abu Mezer 48705-053 Serving a life sentence Convicted of being part of the 1997 Brooklyn bombing plot which was a plan to bomb the New York City Subway.[21]
James Eagan Holmes 02350-122 Serving 12 consecutive life sentences plus 3,318 years without parole. Mass murderer responsible for the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting in which he killed 12 people and injured 70 others[22]
Vyacheslav Ivankov 30219-048 Released in July 2004 for extradition Convicted of extortion in January 1997
Christopher Jeburk 09029-021 Serving a life sentence Bank robber on FBI Ten Most Wanted list; kidnapped bank teller and her family, then escaped from prison twice before he could be sentenced for his crimes[23][24]
Salvador Magluta 26012-037 Scheduled release date is 2165 Convicted of falsifying documents (1996) and bribery, money laundering (2002); sentenced to 9 years in prison,[25] plus 195 years;[26] His sentence was reduced to 195 years on appeal.[27] He was transferred to the supermax federal prison facility in Florence, Colorado.[28]
Howard Mason 24651-053 Serving a life sentence Convicted in 1989 of racketeering charges in connection with his leadership of "The Bebos," a drug cartel in Queens, New York; ordered the 1988 murder of a New York City police officer[29]
El Sayyid Nosair 35074-054 Serving a life sentence; transferred to USP Big Sandy[citation needed] Egyptian-born American citizen convicted of involvement in the 1993 New York City landmark bomb plot; earlier acquitted of the 1990 New York City assassination of Meir Kahane, he later admitted to having committed this assassination. serving a life sentence; transferred to USP Big Sandy[citation needed]
Esteban Santiago-Ruiz 15500-104 Serving five life sentences plus 120 years; transferred to USP Tucson[citation needed] Mass murderer pleaded guilty to the 2017 Fort Lauderdale airport shooting
Hosam Smadi 39482-177 Scheduled release in 2031 Pleaded guilty in 2010 to the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction for plotting to destroy the 60-story Fountain Place office building in Dallas, Texas with a truck bomb in 2009[30][31]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Gregg township, PA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2022-08-14. Allenwood Federal Correctional Complx
  2. ^ "USP Allenwood". Federal Bureau of Prisons.
  3. ^ Bosworth, Mary (2002). The US Federal Prison System. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. pp. 375. ISBN 9780761923046.
  4. ^ Spens, Iona (1994). The Architecture of Incarceration. London: Academy Editions. p. 128. ISBN 9781854903587.
  5. ^ Bosworth, Mary (2002). The US Federal Prison System. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. pp. 375. ISBN 9780761923046.
  6. ^ "DAVID PAUL HAMMER, PETITIONER V. JOHN D. ASHCROFT, ET AL" (PDF). US Department of Justice.
  7. ^ Beauge, John (July 17, 2014). "Admitted murderer of Allenwood cell mate no longer facing execution". Penn Live. PA Media Group. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  8. ^ Walker, R.A. (February 15, 2008). "Two indicted for 2005 killing at Allenwood prison complex". Williamsport Sun-Gazette (PA). Archived from the original on March 3, 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2013.
  9. ^ "Pennsylvania Inmate Sentenced To Life In Prison For Violent Murder Of Fellow Inmate". US Department of Justice. May 15, 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2013.
  10. ^ "Injured Allenwood prison guard to observe a belated Christmas with his family". 2021-01-14.
  11. ^ Farenish, Melissa (8 December 2020). "Corrections officer at Allenwood federal prison in critical condition after inmate stabbed him in eye". NorthcentralPA.com. Retrieved 2020-12-10.
  12. ^ "Inmate accused of attacking prison staff in Union County". wnep.com. 8 December 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-10.
  13. ^ "It's 'like an attack on all us,' union official says about stabbing of veteran prison guard, HS coach". 11 December 2020.
  14. ^ Nasaw, Daniel (October 3, 2011). "Somali pirates face hard time in US prison". BBC News. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
  15. ^ "Two More Somalis Plead Guilty To Charges Relating To Piracy Of Quest". US Department of Justice. 25 May 2011. Archived from the original on 15 January 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2013.
  16. ^ "LAX Shooter Sentenced To Life In Prison For Murder Of TSA Officer - CBS Los Angeles". www.cbsnews.com. November 7, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  17. ^ "LAX Shooter Paul Ciancia Sentenced to Life in Prison for Killing TSA Officer". 7 November 2016.
  18. ^ Preston, Julia (July 1, 2004). "Metro Briefing | New York: Manhattan: Mob Chief Sentenced". The New York Times.
  19. ^ "James Alex Fields, driver in deadly car attack at Charlottesville rally, sentenced to life in prison". NBC News. June 28, 2019. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  20. ^ "Neo-Nazi James Fields Gets 2nd Life Sentence For Charlottesville Attack". July 15, 2019. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  21. ^ "Brooklyn judge jails Palestinian for life for plot to bomb subway". The Guardian. March 3, 1999. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  22. ^ "James Holmes Gets Life Without Parole in Aurora Massacre Case, Avoids Death Penalty". ABC News. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  23. ^ "A Fugitive's on the Loose". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on August 15, 2011. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  24. ^ "Jeburk's cohort admits 5 robberies". The Augusta Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  25. ^ Lebowitz, Larry (December 23, 1997). "9 Years for Man Who Fled Court". South Florida Sun Sentinel.
  26. ^ BarM-s Diaz, Madeline (January 23, 2003). "Reputed Drug Kingpin Gets Life". South Florida Sun Sentinel.
  27. ^ "#FreeSalMagluta: Cocaine Cowboy Seeks Compassionate Release from Federal Prison".
  28. ^ "Inside The Cartels Of The Real "Miami Vice"". America's Most Wanted. Archived from the original on December 13, 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
  29. ^ Fried, Joseph P. (January 9, 1994). "Drug Dealer Is Sentenced to Life For Ordering Killing of Officer". The New York Times.
  30. ^ "Jordanian Man Faces Sentencing in Plot to Blow Up Dallas Skyscraper". Fox News. Associated Press. October 18, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
  31. ^ "Jordanian man sentenced to 24 years in undercover bomb plot". CNN. October 19, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
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41°07′52″N 76°55′37″W / 41.131°N 76.927°W / 41.131; -76.927

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