A former correctional officer who was injured during a riot at Folsom State Prison is seeking more than $25,000 in damages from the state and the California Department of Corrections.
In a suit filed Wednesday in Sacramento Superior Court, Patrick O'Dea asserts that the April 8, 2002, fracas between two rival gangs was "orchestrated" by three prison officials who no longer work at Folsom.
The three - then-Associate Warden Michael Bunnell, Capt. Oliver Acuna and Lt. Allen Baber - are named as individual defendants.
"The riot orchestrated by Bunnell, Acuna and Baber created a dangerous condition for both inmates and staff who were put in harm's way and required to 'put down' the riot and break up fights," the suit said.
The 90-second altercation between warring Latino inmates from Northern and Southern California resulted in 25 injuries.
Margot Bach, spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections, said Thursday, "We haven't seen the suit, so it would be premature to comment."
Bunnell, Acuna and Baber could not be reached for comment.
The suit cites a state investigation, which concluded that the riot began after management blunders.
For the previous 12 weeks, the rival gangs had been separated at the prison, following a Jan. 4 fight between the factions, according to state investigators.
On April 8, the inmates were unlocked in large groups. The riot began minutes later when one gang attacked the other in the main yard.
O'Dea was one of about 20 officers who attempted to subdue about 80 inmates.
"When it was over, I spent the rest of the day picking inmates up off the ground, escorting them to interviews and medical attention," O'Dea told The Bee in November.
Only later did he realize that he had been seriously injured, O'Dea said.
Doctors diagnosed him with a herniated disc in his neck. He later underwent surgery. He says he still suffers from neurological problems in his arms and legs, injuries the suit describes as "permanently disabling."
O'Dea, acting as his own attorney, is demanding a trial by jury. The suit seeks punitive, compensatory, special and general damages.