The Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association is calling for immediate action at SCI-Camp Hill, saying a sharp rise in violence at the state prison is putting corrections staff at risk. Video above: Headlines from WGAL News 8 Today. In a letter released on Monday, PSCOA President Michael Ohler urged SCI-Camp Hill Superintendent Lindsy Kendall to strengthen security measures following serious assaults, citing what he described as alarming increases in staff attacks and violent incidents at the facility.Increase in violent assaultsAccording to the union, the letter points to Pennsylvania Department of Corrections data showing violence has escalated at SCI-Camp Hill despite the department’s Violence Reduction Initiative.”According to Department of Corrections statistics, SCI-Camp Hill recorded 14 staff assaults during all of 2025,” Ohler said. “Through just the first four months of 2026, the institution had already experienced 20 staff assaults — nearly a 43% increase over the entire previous year before one-third of this year had elapsed.” Ohler also said the prison recorded 61 total violent incidents in all of 2025, a number he said had already been matched by April 2026. “Those are not the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association’s numbers. They are the Department of Corrections’ own statistics, and they demonstrate that violence at SCI-Camp Hill is accelerating despite existing intervention strategies,” Ohler said.Concerns follow officer stabbingThe union’s letter also references the recent stabbing of a female corrections officer in the face. According to Ohler, only a brief lockdown followed the attack, which he argued was not enough time to fully secure the facility.”Every serious assault should trigger a thorough search to locate homemade weapons, remove contraband, identify those responsible and restore the security of the institution before normal operations resume,” Ohler said.Ohler said brief lockdowns after major assaults do not allow enough time for comprehensive searches, contraband recovery or full investigations. Changes union wants implemented The PSCOA is urging SCI-Camp Hill to adopt stronger security protocols after serious assaults, including: A minimum 36-hour lockdown of affected housing units Suspending visitation and other inmate privileges until searches are complete Conducting thorough searches of all affected housing units Re-evaluating the Department of Corrections’ Violence Reduction Initiative Union claims safety must remain highest priorityOhler said corrections officers understand the risks that come with the job, but he argued they should not be expected to work in conditions where security threats remain unresolved. “Correctional institutions are inherently dangerous environments, and our members understand that reality,” Ohler said. “They should never be expected to work in an institution where known security threats are allowed to persist because facilities return to normal operations before comprehensive searches and investigations have been completed.” The letter closes with a call for prison leadership to restore confidence in the institution’s safety measures. “Our members deserve nothing less than a workplace where every reasonable measure is taken to protect their safety,” Ohler wrote. See news happening? Send us your photos or videos if it’s safe to do so at https://www.wgal.com/upload.
CAMP HILL, Pa. —
The Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association is calling for immediate action at SCI-Camp Hill, saying a sharp rise in violence at the state prison is putting corrections staff at risk.
Video above: Headlines from WGAL News 8 Today.
In a letter released on Monday, PSCOA President Michael Ohler urged SCI-Camp Hill Superintendent Lindsy Kendall to strengthen security measures following serious assaults, citing what he described as alarming increases in staff attacks and violent incidents at the facility.
Increase in violent assaults
According to the union, the letter points to Pennsylvania Department of Corrections data showing violence has escalated at SCI-Camp Hill despite the department’s Violence Reduction Initiative.
“According to Department of Corrections statistics, SCI-Camp Hill recorded 14 staff assaults during all of 2025,” Ohler said. “Through just the first four months of 2026, the institution had already experienced 20 staff assaults — nearly a 43% increase over the entire previous year before one-third of this year had elapsed.”
Ohler also said the prison recorded 61 total violent incidents in all of 2025, a number he said had already been matched by April 2026.
“Those are not the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association’s numbers. They are the Department of Corrections’ own statistics, and they demonstrate that violence at SCI-Camp Hill is accelerating despite existing intervention strategies,” Ohler said.
WGAL News 8
SCI Camp Hill
Concerns follow officer stabbing
The union’s letter also references the recent stabbing of a female corrections officer in the face. According to Ohler, only a brief lockdown followed the attack, which he argued was not enough time to fully secure the facility.
“Every serious assault should trigger a thorough search to locate homemade weapons, remove contraband, identify those responsible and restore the security of the institution before normal operations resume,” Ohler said.
Ohler said brief lockdowns after major assaults do not allow enough time for comprehensive searches, contraband recovery or full investigations.
Changes union wants implemented
The PSCOA is urging SCI-Camp Hill to adopt stronger security protocols after serious assaults, including:
A minimum 36-hour lockdown of affected housing units Suspending visitation and other inmate privileges until searches are complete Conducting thorough searches of all affected housing units Re-evaluating the Department of Corrections’ Violence Reduction Initiative Union claims safety must remain highest priority
Ohler said corrections officers understand the risks that come with the job, but he argued they should not be expected to work in conditions where security threats remain unresolved.
“Correctional institutions are inherently dangerous environments, and our members understand that reality,” Ohler said. “They should never be expected to work in an institution where known security threats are allowed to persist because facilities return to normal operations before comprehensive searches and investigations have been completed.”
The letter closes with a call for prison leadership to restore confidence in the institution’s safety measures.
“Our members deserve nothing less than a workplace where every reasonable measure is taken to protect their safety,” Ohler wrote.
See news happening? Send us your photos or videos if it’s safe to do so at https://www.wgal.com/upload.