The Richland County Sheriff’s Department is investigating an altercation that injured two men at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center.
The victims, men aged 18 and 23, were treated for stab wounds after being approached by a larger group of inmates who instigated the fight Friday, according to a statement from the sheriff’s department.
The 18-year-old was stabbed approximately a dozen times on his upper and lower body. The injuries to both men were not life-threatening, and they were treated by medical staff at the jail.
Sheriff’s deputies were called to the jail shortly after 1 p.m. to provide “assistance with an altercation between several detainees,” according to the statement. While the two victims were uncooperative, deputies say that they worked with jail staff to determine who instigated the fight.
The sheriff’s department has described the investigation as “ongoing.”
The latest stabbings end another bad week for the troubled jail.
On Tuesday, inmate John Meador was recaptured by Lexington County Sheriff’s deputies after escaping from the jail. The following day, an inmate died after being taken to the hospital due to an “altered mental status,” according to a Richland County news release. The cause of death has not been released because investigators have not been able to notify next of kin, according to a coroner’s office spokesperson.
The detainee was the third person incarcerated at the jail to die this year. In January, Antonius Randolph was stabbed to death by five other inmates in his cell.
County officials have pledged to make wide-ranging improvements to the jail, including restructuring leadership and increasing pay for staff. The have also pledged more than a million dollars to retrofit locks and renovate the kitchen and some common areas.