Inside the Anamosa State Penitentiary, correctional officers and staff are in constant danger: from blind corners, to outdated equipment, to overstretched staff.
That's what seven of the Iowa Legislature's Democrats said Friday after a two-hour tour of the prison and a private meeting with staff. The group held a news conference outside Anamosa after its tour, which was prompted by last month's killing of two prison employees in what authorities say was a failed inmate escape attempt by two inmates.
"I am beside myself when I go into a cell block that has 300 offenders in it and two prison guards," said Rep. Marti Anderson, D-Des Moines. "I'm beside myself with that. That has to change."