Gassing is prison slang for the act of throwing feces or some other bodily fluid such as urine, blood or saliva at a jail or prison staff member.
Gassing is an act of rebellion by inmates against custodial staff and is a felony in most U.S. states.
Victims of gassing are encouraged to undertake medical testing for possible infectious diseases. Gassing may occur spontaneously - such as when an inmate spits in the face of a Correctional Officer - or in a planned encounter - such as when an inmate mixes urine or feces with another liquid substance and throws it at a staff member when given the chance. In the state of California, for example, since 1997 a conviction for gassing carries a sentence of up to four years in prison.
Famous quotes containing the word gassing:
“They all see you when you least suspect.
Out flat in your p.j.’s glowering at T.V.
or at the oven gassing the cat
or at the Hotel 69 head to knee.”
—Anne Sexton (1928–1974)