Boston Prison Protest Quelled; Prisoners Seek 'Press, Help'

Ninety prisoners staged a peaceful protest yesterday in the exercise yard of Suffolk County's Charles Street Jail in Boston.

Thomas J. Eisenstadt, Suffolk County Sheriff and the jail's administrator, said the protest began at 10:45 a.m. yesterday when the 90 prisoners refused to leave the yard after their exercise period.

No Forewarning

The inmates remained in the yard the rest of the morning and into the afternoon, marching in circles and chanting. "We want the press. We need help!"

At approximately 3 p.m., Eisenstadt called in 50 Boston policemen and 12 of the jail's special riot detail. The policemen, armed only with nightsticks, managed to return all prisoners to their cells within 20 minutes.

"I don't allow anybody in here with guns," Eisenstadt said, adding that order was restored "without the use of a single nightstick."

Eisenstadt said he felt the protest was the product of "a general mood as a result of what's been going on at other prisons across the state and across the country. There was no forewarning at all, absolutely none."

Eisenstadt said he refused to allow inmates to talk with the press yesterday for security and morale reasons. "We have many psychopathological persons here--people who really belong not in jail but in mental institutions. These people are prone to take advantage of such situations. We find it difficult enough to exercise control," he said.

Privileges Withdrawn

Eisenstadt said prisoners involved in the protest would be locked in their cells "until I have the opportunity to speak with every one of them. Certain privileges--recreation and television--will be withdrawn. Visitation, except with their attorneys, will also be withdrawn."

The Charles Street Jail, housing 340 inmates, has nearly doubled in size during the last three years. During that time only 12 men have been added to the jail's staff. Currently 70 guards working on five shifts man the facility. Six of the guards are black while 60-70 percent of the inmates are black.

Jail Overcrowded

The Jail, long-cited as an obsolete and overcrowded institution, is used primarily to house convicted men awaiting sentencing and men awaiting trial who are too poor to post bond.