State Correctional Institution – Somerset is a medium-security, all-male correctional facility located outside Somerset, Pennsylvania, about 70 miles (110 km) southeast of Pittsburgh, and about 5 miles (8.0 km) off the Somerset Interchange of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. In March 2024, 44 of Pennsylvania's death row inmates were moved to Somerset.[2] They were previously at SCI Phoenix, which continues to house other death penalty prisoners.[3]
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| Location | Somerset Township / Brothersvalley Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Status | Open |
| Security class | Medium security |
| Capacity | 1,600[1] |
| Opened | 1993 |
| Managed by | Pennsylvania Department of Corrections |
Almost all of the prison is in Somerset Township,[4] while a small portion is in Brothersvalley Township.[5] The total land area is 240 acres (97 ha).[3]
Construction of SCI - Somerset
editSCI – Somerset was constructed at a cost[1] of $82 million and was completed in 1993. The prison was constructed on the site of a farm. The campus covers 63 acres, inside and outside the perimeter fence.
Notable Inmates
edit| Inmate Name | Register Number | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eric Frein | MY0275 | Sentenced to death. | Perpetrator of the 2014 Pennsylvania State Police barracks attack in which he murdered Bryon Dickson and injured another officer.[6][7][8][9] After a large state-wide manhunt, Frein was captured and tried for his crimes.[10][11][12][13] |
| John Eichinger | GL3402 | Sentenced to death.[14] | Convicted of murdering 4 people.[15] |
| James David Martin | GN0771 | Serving a sentence of 22-to-44 years. | Murdered 3 people between 1989-2005.[16][17][18] |
| Richard Andrew Poplawski | KB7354 | Sentenced to death.[19] | Perpetrator of the 2009 shooting of Pittsburgh police officers in which he murdered three cops after a 9-1-1 call from his mom's home.[20][21][22] |
| Raghunandan Yandamuri | LU3857 | Sentenced to death.[23] | Convicted of the kidnapping-murder of Saanvi Venna and murdering Satyavathi Venna.[23] |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "New Somerset Jail Ready For Dedication" - Gettysburg Times, 4/13/1993 (Retrieved 5/6/2011)
- ^ Wojcik, Baylee. "44 death row inmates now being housed at SCI Somerset". WJAC-TV.
- ^ a b Hurst, David (2024-03-02). "DOC: Some Pa. death row inmates now housed at SCI-Somerset". The Tribune-Democrat. Retrieved 2024-07-18.
- ^ "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Somerset township, PA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. p. 4 (PDF p. 5/5). Retrieved 2024-07-18.
State Correctional Institution Somerset
- ^ "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Brothersvalley township, PA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2024-07-18.
State Correctional Institution Somerset
- ^ Fitzsimmons, Emma G. (2014-09-13). "State Police Officer Dies in Pennsylvania Ambush". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Eric Frein At Large as Mourners Remember Trooper Bryon Dickson". NBC News. 2014-09-18. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Eric Matthew Frein identified by police as suspect in deadly trooper ambush - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 2014-09-16. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Funeral for slain Pennsylvania trooper". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Eric Frein Was Dedicated to Killing Cops: Pennsylvania Police". NBC News. 2014-10-31. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Welch, Michael Winter, John Bacon and William M. "Manhunt ends with suspect placed in slain trooper's handcuffs". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Barbash, Fred (2021-10-25). "'Literally hunting humans': Eric Frein, sniper who killed Pa. trooper, sentenced to death". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Eric Frein, trooper ambush killer, sentenced to death in Pennsylvania - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 2017-04-27. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Gibbons, Margaret (2005-11-09). "Jury gives killer death". Mainline Media News. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
- ^ "Eichinger confronted by loved ones of victims". Mainline Media News. 2005-12-13. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
- ^ https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1989/05/06/police-theorize-arundel-youth-was-killed-for-his-air-jordans/f5dc8ea5-376e-44bc-9ee2-19dff47c514b/ [bare URL]
- ^ "Suspect James Martin arraigned in 1998 rape & murder of Bronx teenager". New York Daily News. 2012-05-10. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
- ^ Wilson, Michael (2012-05-11). "14 Years in an Unmarked Grave, and Finally a Break in the Case". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
- ^ "Cop-Killer Richard Poplawski Sentenced To Death". WPXI. 2011-06-28. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ ROBBINS, LIZ; HAMILL, SEAN D. (2009-04-04). "Gunman Kills 3 Police Officers in Pittsburgh". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Gunman Kills 3 Pittsburgh Police Officers - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 2009-04-04. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "911 worker didn't tell Pittsburgh police of guns". NBC News. 2009-04-07. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ a b "COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. RAGHUNANDAN YANDAMURI (2017)". FindLaw. Retrieved 6 April 2024.