Calipatria State Prison (CAL) is a male-only state prison located in the city of Calipatria, in Imperial County, California.

Facilities

Although located about from the center of Calipatria, the prison is within the city limits. Called the lowest prison in the Western Hemisphere, it lies below sea level. As of Fiscal Year 2005/2006, CAL had a total of 1,143 staff and an annual operating budget of $123 million.

The facility covers a total of (with the prison on ).

As of July 31, 2022, CAL was incarcerating people at 110.1% of its design capacity, with 2,543 occupants.

Over 2,000 of its housing units are maximum-security Level IV ("Cells, fenced or walled perimeters, electronic security, more staff and unarmed officers both inside and outside the installation"); the remainder are minimum-security Level I ("Open dormitories without a secure perimeter").

History

thumb|200px|right|Location of Calipatria within Imperial County, and location of Imperial County within California

CAL opened in January 1992, After a number of birds had died by electrocution, an ornithologist was hired to help redesign the fence and eliminate the problem.

As of 1995, CAL's problems included "double-celling" (placing two inmates in bunk beds in a cell designed for one), psychological stress, a drastic shortage of work for prisoners, chronic understaffing among prison employees, and gang violence.

An August 2005 riot at CAL was the most violent uprising at the prison. The event left 25 inmates and 25 prison staff members wounded.

Notable inmates (current & former)

  • Patrick Kearney, serial killer known as the Trashbag Killer. Spent time in CAL in the early 2000s.
  • James Fagone, accomplice of murderer Larissa Schuster
  • Angelo Buono Jr., serial killer and one of the two "Hillside Stranglers"; died in CAL in 2002
  • Alexander Hernandez, serial killer
  • Shazer Fernando Limas, murderer who killed his girlfriend and two young children.
  • Jose Luis Orozco, murderer who killed Los Angeles Deputy Sheriff Jerry Ortiz on June 24, 2005. Sentenced to death.
  • Herbert “Peanut” Tom, murderer who killed 4 in a drive by shooting in Calexico, California, on December 9, 1998.

References

  • Calipatria State Prison website