Law enforcement authorities have reestablished control over the city's sprawling prison (Cereso) that exploded in bloody combat on Nov. 1. In an all-too-familiar scene, hundreds of inmates armed with guns and sharp objects battled for control of the overcrowded facility.

The fighting erupted as 300 relatives of inmates were visiting their loved ones. Caught in a cross-fire of rocks, bullets and tear gas, visiting families feared for their lives.

"The prisoners wanted to kill us," said a terrified, 7-year-old Miguel Betancourt. Some relatives credited prisoners for saving their lives from rampaging inmates while prison guards stood by without intervening. Called to the scene, municipal police were able to evacuate some of the trapped visitors.

"It was obvious that relatives were stuck between the two gangs and one of them was threatening to open fire on the visitors, including dozens of children and women." said city police spokesman Jaime Torres Valadez. "If this had been put down by force instead of by dialogue, we would have had a greater number of dead people."

When the battle was finally over, two inmates, Humberto Hermelano Aguirre Candelario and Octavio Vargas Chavez lay dead, and 70 others were injured.

Rebellious inmates held sections of the prison for 63 hours. An early Sunday morning assault on Nov. 4 by nearly 500 state and municipal police officers led by Chihuahua State Attorney General Patricia Gonzalez regained control of the Cereso. Authorities confiscated three firearms, 33 Molotov cocktails and more than 600 other weapons. However, two shotguns and a fully automatic AR-15 rifle that were supposedly used by the Aztecas were not reported found. Video cameras captured inmates toting the still-missing weapons during the melee.

The uprising was the first crisis to test the new city administration of Mayor Jose Reyes Ferriz, who took office last month. Amid reports that prison guards allowed inmates to riot, Mayor Reyes fired Warden Jose Grajeda Almaraz and prison guard commander Anastasia Gallegos Gonzalez.

State Attorney General Gonzalez's office quickly filed negligence charges against Gallegos and another prison employee. But Grajeda leaped to Gallegos’ defense.

"He's honest, a worker, and has dignity and respect," Grajeda said. "It's unjust that people dedicated to their work are made to look like devils, and all of this because they give more credence to the bad apples, who are the ones that criticize Anastasio.”

Grajeda maintained that he inherited a disastrous, explosive situation when he took over the job running the prison. The sacked warden added that he requested municipal and state officials transfer 101 inmates one week before the Cereso blew up,

The Nov. 1 violence pitted members of the Aztecas street gang against their longtime rivals from the Mexicles gang. The two groups have long struggled for control of the lucrative illegal drug business inside the prison. A third gang, "Killer Artists," also has a presence in the Cereso.

State Attorney General Gonzalez said witnesses have accused former prison guard commander Gallegos of protecting the Aztecas.

Since late 2005, the Cereso has been the scene of violent power struggles between inmate gangs. With the latest violence, at least 18 inmates have been killed and more than 100 injured during the last two years. In the worst incident, nine prisoners were killed during a March 2006 fight.
Earlier this year, two tunnels under the prison were discovered by authorities. Built to hold 1,500 inmates, the Cereso housed more than 3,000 prisoners when it erupted in violence last week.

It's not publicly known what sparked the latest clash, but a reported Aztecas member and former Chihuahua State Judicial Police officer, Prisciliano Martinez Herrera, was murdered gangland-style on the streets of Ciudad Juarez two days before the prison violence erupted. Other alleged links between the Aztecas and former and current state policemen have been reported in the local press. According to State Attorney General Patricia Gonzalez, events inside the prison are controlled from the outside by gang leaders who live in Ciudad Juarez or neighboring El Paso.

Mayor Reyes appointed a veteran ex-state police official, Salvador Barrendo, as the new Cereso warden. Previously associated with the administration of former Gov. Patricio Martinez (1998-2004) and his top cop, "Chito” Solis, the new warden immediately fended off criticism from some inmates about alleged corruption on his record. Barrendo said he would "dialogue" with prisoners, but ruled out formal negotiations.

In a press conference, State Attorney General Patricia Gonzalez confirmed that her office will probe the background to the Nov. 1 violence. “We are looking at the probable responsibility and participation of authorities that were at the Cereso earlier, but these are preliminary investigations separate from the ones having to do with Nov. 1,”
Gonzalez clarified.

As immediate steps to head off further bloodshed, authorities announced the transfer of some inmates and the construction of a concrete wall to separate members of the Aztecas and Mexicles gangs inside the prison.

"The root problem won't be resolved until we build a new Cereso," said Mayor Reyes. "The situation is very complicated. We received a prison in grave condition. Without having the certainty (violent outbreaks) like this one aren't going to happen, we are taking measures to control them."

Legislators Jorge Neaves Chacon and Antonio Andreu Rodriguez of the Institutional Revolutionary Party announced they will seek support from Mexican President Calderon’s administration to construct a new federal prison in Ciudad Juarez. Although the Cereso is set up to incarcerate local and state lawbreakers, about half its current inmate population consists of individuals charged with federal offenses, which typically involve drug law violations.

Business and social leaders condemned the Nov. 1 bloodletting, with some also urging federal intervention as well as an end to the widespread corruption which has allegedly characterized management of the prison.

Gabriel Flores Viramontes, president of the local branch of the Canacintra business association, urged the construction of a new federal prison to hold problematic inmates. Laurencio Barraza Limon, a representative of the Independent Popular Organization, contended that a long overdue revamping of the prison system should include therapeutic treatment programs and rehabilitative activities.

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Sources:
-- Norte, November 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 2007. Articles by Nohemi Barraza, Carlos Huerta, Salvador Castro, Pablo Hernandez Batista, and Jorge Chairez Daniel.
-- La Polaka.com, November 2, 3, 5, 6, 2007.
-- Frontenet.com, November 4, 2007.
-- El Diario de Juarez, October 31, 2007; November 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 2007. Articles by Armando Rodriguez and editorial staff.

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Frontera NorteSur (FNS): on-line, U.S.-Mexico border news Center for Latin American and Border Studies New Mexico State University Las Cruces, New Mexico

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