May
10, 2019
W.Va.
hosts global audience at 23rd Mock Prison Riot
MOUNDSVILLE,
W.Va. – More than 1,230 correctional and law enforcement
officers and officials from across the U.S. and around the world converged on
the former West Virginia Penitentiary this week for the 2019 Mock Prison Riot.
Participants from 33 states and 22
countries attended the four-day event. Highlights included extensive training
exercises, team and individual skills competitions, and a technology expo featuring
45 vendors. The W.Va. Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR)
organizes the annual event at the historic former prison, which operated from
1876 until 1995, in conjunction with the non-profit W.Va. Corrections Training
Foundation.
“The domestic and international attendees
always comment how beautiful West Virginia is and how the people of our state
are so friendly,” said Military Affairs and Public Safety Secretary Jeff Sandy,
whose department includes DCR. “This is also important for our economy, in that
over 1,000 attendees booked hotel rooms up to a year in advance for this
training experience.”
The two days of skills competition saw 34
U.S. and international teams take part. For the third consecutive year, the Michigan
Department of Corrections won the Tactical Skills Team Competition. Senegal’s team
took top honors in the Super Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) event. The
tactical training portion of Mock Prison Riot, meanwhile, featured 59 scenarios
and 43 teams participating.
“It has been our privilege once again to
host our fellow public safety officers from around the world and to continue
offering the outstanding training and technology opportunities for developing
and improving their skills,” said Corrections and Rehabilitation Commissioner
Betsy Jividen.
The May 5-8 event drew representatives from
Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. Of these
international delegations, 17 attended with support from the U.S. State
Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.
“The men and women of West Virginia
corrections provided a wonderful learning experience for the domestic and
international attendees,” Sandy said. “Working with the U.S. State Department,
foreign embassies, and interpreters makes this large-scale event a challenge
and our state employees rose to the occasion.”
Jividen hosted a group discussion for
women attendees, and later led them on a tour of West Virginia’s Lakin
Correctional Center.
“This group of international women spending
the day together and touring our women’s facility gave us a unique opportunity
to forge new friendships,” Jividen said. “We shared successes, addressed issues
of the worldwide incarcerated female population, and learned from each other
about ways in which we can all meet the challenges facing us - both as
correctional professionals and as women in the criminal justice field. I know
we are all looking forward to continuing to build upon, and benefit from, these
relationships in years to come.”
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