The deadliest U.S. prison riot in 25 years, killing seven inmates, prompted a $92 million state investment in South Carolina prison reform.
Key Facts
- Deaths
- 7 prisoners killed
- Date
- April 15, 2018
- Inmates indicted
- 29 on murder and mayhem charges
- Indictment date
- December 3, 2020
- State investment approved
- $92 million for prison improvements
- Historical ranking
- Most violent U.S. prison riot in 25 years
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The riot was triggered by a prison cell robbery that escalated into gang-on-gang violence. Investigators identified underlying systemic factors including gang activity, staff shortages, severe overcrowding, and poor living conditions at Lee Correctional Institution as the root causes that enabled violence to spiral out of control.
On April 15, 2018, inmates at Lee Correctional Institution in Bishopville, South Carolina engaged in a full-scale riot involving multiple prison gangs. The violence resulted in the deaths of seven prisoners, making it the most violent prison riot in the United States in the preceding 25 years.
In December 2020, 29 inmates were indicted on murder and mayhem charges. The riot drew attention to systemic failures in South Carolina's prison system, leading the state General Assembly in 2021 to approve a $92 million investment in prison improvements — the largest single-year prison investment in the state's history.
Political Outcome
29 inmates indicted; South Carolina General Assembly approved $92 million in prison reforms in 2021