Play examines what happened at Lucasville prison

YOUNGSTOWN — In 1993, an inmate uprising at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility at Lucasville gripped the state and the nation.

For 11 days, 407 inmates laid siege to what was then the state’s maximum-security prison.

When it was over, nine inmates and one prison guard — Officer Robert Vallandingham — were dead. In the ensuing trial, five rioters — who have come to be known as the Lucasville 5 — were found guilty of Vallandingham’s murder and sentenced to death.

But did they do it?

Staughton Lynd, the renowned civil rights attorney and resident of Niles, says no. In a play that he has co-written, “Lucasville: The Untold Story of a Prison Uprising,” Lynd makes the case that the inmates were convicted solely on the basis of untrue testimony from other rioting inmates, and no physical evidence.

“Lucasville” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the First Unitarian Universalist Church, 1105 Elm St.

For the complete story, see Thursday's Vindicator or Vindy.com.