Union Correctional Institution - Union Correctional Institution

Union Correctional Institution

The East Unit became a separate institution in 1961, renamed Florida State Prison. Construction would continue on this site until 1972. The original prison site became known as Union Correctional Institution, as it is still known today. A new Death Row was constructed in 1992, coinciding with the relocation of inmates from the State Prison next door. The present-day facility still uses many of the older buildings, some since before the prison split in 1961. The prison has an eclectic range of facilities, from hearing impaired and elderly accommodation to designated confinement space. The prison also has a variety of living residences, such as cell units, house units and self contained houses.

A 1999 report by the St. Petersburg Times took a detailed look into issues of racism and diversity in the Union Correctional Institution. The report stated that more than half of the inmates were black, and more than 75% of the guards were white. This alone was grounds for racial tension. Several officers and inmates reported a clique of racist guards, distinguishable by the cord key chains they would wear. Problems turned out to be far more significant, however, after a review of public records and court files revealed over 100 black agency employees were involved in law suits alleging rampant racism and discrimination in the prison system. Perhaps worst of these allegations, a black recreation manager once arrived at his desk to find across his bulletin board the letters “KKK”. The report also included the story of a 1993 incident; inmates on death-row were exposed to a man wearing a KKK-style white sheet walking by their cells.