¶ … Legality of Prison Riots
Once a riot is quelled in the situation that is described in this particular assignment, there are a couple of different charges that the state can bring against the prisoners. The most salient of these charges is hostage taking. It is unlawful for individuals to take another as a hostage, in much the same way that it is unlawful for those individuals to take a group of individuals as hostages. Thus, the inmates that participate in taking the hostage and in maintaining the hostage are certainly liable to be charged with hostage taking. It is critical to note, however, that the individuals who participate in the riot and who do not directly partake in the actions of taking or maintaining the hostages cannot be charged for this particular crime.
Still, there are other charges that can be brought against these inmates -- whether or not they actively partook in holding some of the guards hostage. Perhaps the most eminent of these charges is assault. Additionally, these inmates can also be charged with battery if they do not use a weapon to inflict violence against the guards. However, if there is any form of weapon involved...
Another charge that inmates might be assigned after the riot is over is unlawful assembly. In prisons, there are certain times and places where inmates are designated to assemble. Some of these times and places include within a cafeteria for lunch time, or out on the yard for recreational activities. However, whether or not the assembly is deemed lawful pertains to a number of different factors. If the guards instruct the prisoners to leave the yard, for instance, their refusal to do so (and subsequent rioting in there) is grounds for them to get charged with unlawful assembly.
There are a couple of things the government has to do in order to prove that an inmate should be convicted of hostage taking. Firstly, the government must prove that the inmate did in fact take a hostage. Doing so requires proof that the inmate did indeed take a hostage. Doing so requires detaining an individual under threat or coercion against his or her will. Moreover, the purpose of that detainment typically has to be in order to negotiate or to compel a…
