Four months after his cell mate was found strangled and beaten to death, Ely State Prison inmate James Ofeldt, 28, was formally charged with Erik Houser’s murder by the Nevada attorney Generals office.
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According to the criminal complaint release this week by the AG’s office prison staff at Ely State Prison discovered Houser laying face down on his bunk May 29. Ofeldt and Houser had been cell mates since May 16, 2011. Prison
Medical staff and the White Pine County Sheriff’s Office pronounced Houser deceased.
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White Pine County Sheriff’s personnel transported Houser to Clark County where an autopsy was performed. After conducting an autopsy, the Clark County Coroner’s Office determined the cause of Houser’s death to be homicide due to ligature strangulation.
Ofeldt is due to be arraigned in the Ely Township Justice Court on November 30, 2011.
While no motive for the killing is given in the state’s complaint anonymous inmates indicate Houser was killed because he befriended black and Hispanic inmates.
Houser had been serving time for convictions in Washoe County on weapon and stolen vehicle possession charges.
Originally sentenced to the minimum security Carlin Honor Camp, Houser walked away while on a work detail in 2008 with less than a year before parole. He was captured less than a week later in Reno and now deemed a flight risk was sent to Ely Maximum Security Prison where he was ordered to serve out his full sentenced with another six years tacked on for his escape.
This August the High Desert Advocate was the ultimate recipient of an anonymous letter dated August 11, 2011 which read:
“Caseworker Mrs Weiss is the lady who put them in for the bed move); head case worker Mr Drain, CERT team Lt. Mr (forgothisname), Associate Warden of Operations Mrs Debra Brooks and Associate Warden of Programs Mr WIlls approved the bed move.
Now the individual that was murdered goes by the nickname Pingo. He is one of the most respectable prisoners amongst the prisoners except of the LAD’s) which is a white skinhead group. At Ely if you’re not running with your race you’re doomed. …
Let me tell you this, Pingo use to draw pictures and cards for free for everybody…. Also this is Caseworker Mrs Weiss second time placing 2 people in cells and one ends up murdering the other. …
Pingo was cool with all races, in which numerous inmates and prison guards do not accept. Amongst the whites he was considered a trader (sic).”
According to other sources in the prison and now confirmed by the state’s press release, Hauser and his alleged killer had only be very recently moved into the same cell.
Those same sources indicate and the Advocate has confirmed that almost the entire prison population is on ‘lock down’ 23 out of 24 hours a day and that situation has existed at least as long as Houser’s killing and perhaps much longer.
But the near constant caging of some of the most violent and dangerous men in Nevada has not meant a complete absence of violence by prisoners toward other inmates or on guards or other staff of the prison.
While official news coming out of the prison is kept to an almost complete blackout, nonofficial sources tell of a facility where Correction officers are attacked on an almost daily basis.
In a letter posted on the Nevada prison Watch website an inmate gleefully related a mass action against staff earlier this year:
“A young soldier kicked it off by “capturing” his food slot, giving the unit senior a golden shower and starting a fire on the tier. Throughout the day more fires were lit. Both sides of unit one managed to flood out both wings and hallway. Fire “cocktails” and “donuts” were lobbed at the guards. But no cell extraction were attempted because the January 31st 2010 rebellion was still fresh in their minds and none of these cops are anxious to put themselves in that position again (c.o. Stubbs was stabbed on January 31st 2010 when he and a dozen other officers tried to assault another prisoner). In the end. There were no serious injuries (thankfully), but the guards were forced to do a lot of manual labor. And there was a decent amount of property damage. The best part was: the next day, we got our food back!!”
In the past other mass violent actions have also resulted in “victories” for the inmates, perhaps teaching them that might does make right. In 2007 Ely State Prison allegedly experienced a series of reported disturbances including the flooding of tiers and small fires in the cell blocks, as a result of requiring inmates be dressed in jump suits before getting their meals. For three days inmates started fires on the tiers, flooded their cells by plugging drains and propelled foul or nasty substances at correctional staff. Sources further reported that extra correctional officers had to be called in on overtime to deal with the disturbances which were exacerbated by chronic staff shortages.
The riotous response that resulted may have been effective. After three days the policy was rescinded.
The dangerous conditions at the prison may explain why even during the recession and the double digit unemployment rate in Nevada, ESP officials still have trouble staffing the facility.
On July 1, 2004, a Washoe County Judge sentenced Ofeldt to a combined prison term of 72 to 312 months in the Department of Corrections for robbery with a deadly weapon, burglary and conspiracy.
Like Hauser, Ofeldt earliest release date was in 2012.
