Alexander Correctional Institution
| Location | 633 Old Landfill Road, Taylorsville, North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Status | open |
| Security class | close security |
| Capacity | 1180 |
| Opened | April 2004 |
| Managed by | North Carolina Department of Public Safety |
Alexander Correctional Institution is a North Carolina Department of Public Safety state prison for men, located in Taylorsville, North Carolina.[1] The facility opened in 2004 as one of three 1000-bed close-facility prisons built in the state. The institution is a maximum security prison, used mainly for housing inmates that have committed serious crimes. [2] Inmates are assigned to one of four internal units: a Blue Unit for transferring prisoners and those with chronic health issues, a Red Unit for security threat group prisoners, a Green Unit for inmates on work assignments, and a disciplinary Segregation Unit.[3]
In August 2008 inmate Timothy E. Helms, serving three life terms and in segregated housing (solitary confinement), alleged that a beating by corrections officers had given him brain damage and left him a quadriplegic. Although the investigation revealed a variety of violations of the prison's own standards (Helms had been placed in segregation for 571 consecutive days, officers had tethered him with a nylon strap similar to a leash, medical attention was delayed until the next day, etc.), no charges were ever filed. Helms died in an extended-care facility in September 2010.[4]
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Coordinates: 35°53′07″N 81°10′38″W / 35.88519°N 81.17731°W