Twin Rivers Corrections Center
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The Monroe Correctional Complex is a
Washington State Department of Corrections The Washington State Department of Corrections (WADOC) is a department of the government of the State of Washington. WADOC is responsible for administering adult corrections programs operated by the state. This includes state correctional inst ...
men's prison located in
Monroe, Washington Monroe is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, Snohomish County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Skykomish River, Skykomish, Snohomish River, Snohomish, and Snoqualmie River, Snoqualmie r ...
, United States. With a bed capacity of over 3,100, it is the largest prison in the state.


Facility

Vocational classes offered at MCC include printing,
information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...
and
personal computer A personal computer, commonly referred to as PC or computer, is a computer designed for individual use. It is typically used for tasks such as Word processor, word processing, web browser, internet browsing, email, multimedia playback, and PC ...
support specialist, and inmates can earn a GED while incarcerated. An independent non-profit, University Beyond Bars (UBB), offers college courses as a volunteer organization, and some people incarcerated at MCC have earned associate degrees despite the prohibition of state funding for post-secondary education. Class II and III jobs are located within MCC. Class III jobs provide essential services to the facility such as maintenance,
janitor A cleaner, cleanser or cleaning operative is a type of Industry (economics), industrial or domestic worker who is tasked with cleaning a space. A janitor (Scotland, United States and Canada), also known as a custodian, Facility Operator, porter ...
ial, clerical warehouse workers, and kitchen work. Class II jobs are designed to reduce the cost of
goods and services Goods are items that are usually (but not always) tangible, such as pens or Apple, apples. Services are activities provided by other people, such as teachers or barbers. Taken together, it is the Production (economics), production, distributio ...
to state agencies and other tax-supported entities. These include
laundry Laundry is the washing of clothing and other textiles, and, more broadly, their drying and ironing as well. Laundry has been part of history since humans began to wear clothes, so the methods by which different cultures have dealt with this u ...
services, a print shop, a license tab shop, and the panel program. Class I industries were once housed at MCC, but were eliminated in July 2004 as a result of a
Washington Supreme Court The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the judiciary of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. The court is composed of a chief justice and eight associate justices. Members of the court are elected to six-year terms. ...
decision that held that inmates cannot be employed by private commercial enterprises. Inmates have access to classification and
mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...
counselors at MCC, in addition to a wide range of paid and volunteer staff.


Units

Washington State Reformatory Unit (WSRU) - The original prison at the site; construction began in 1907 with inmates from the
Washington State Penitentiary Washington State Penitentiary (also called the Walla Walla State Penitentiary) is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the second largest priso ...
and completed in 1910. WSR is the second oldest prison in the state, only to
Washington State Penitentiary Washington State Penitentiary (also called the Walla Walla State Penitentiary) is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the second largest priso ...
. WSR has a capacity of approximately 720, and houses minimum, medium, and maximum custody inmates. There are also extended family visit trailers for family style visits with immediate relatives, available to the entire Monroe complex. WSR also has an inpatient hospital on the 4th floor that is classified as Maximum security. The 4th floor hospital is also used by other
correctional facilities A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are imprisoned under the authority of the state, usually as punishment for various crim ...
within the state. Major
medical care Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is deliver ...
can often be performed here along with daily
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,
X-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...
, and minor medical procedures, but serious
surgical procedures Many surgical procedure names can be broken into parts to indicate the meaning. For example, in gastrectomy, "ectomy" is a suffix meaning the removal of a part of the body. "Gastro-" means stomach. Thus, ''gastrectomy'' refers to the surgical rem ...
are performed in community hospitals. Sky River Treatment Center (SRTC) - Opened in 1980 as Special Offender Center (SOC) under Gov.
Dixy Lee Ray Dixy Lee Ray (September 3, 1914 – January 2, 1994) was an American academic, scientist, and politician who served as the 17th governor of Washington from 1977 to 1981. Variously described as idiosyncratic and "ridiculously smart," she was the s ...
, later renamed to Special Offender Unit (SOU), then to Sky River Treatment Center (SRTC), both under Gov.
Jay Inslee Jay Robert Inslee ( ; born February 9, 1951) is an American politician and lawyer who served from 2013 to 2025 as the 23rd governor of Washington. A member of the Democratic Party, he served from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1999 to 2012 as a ...
, the Sky River Treatment Center houses Incarcerated Individuals that require a residential treatment level of care, with a 400-bed capacity. Security Levels are Maximum, Close, Medium and Minimum 3/Long Term. Twin Rivers Unit (TRU) - Originally known as the Twin Rivers Corrections Center, the Twin Rivers Unit was opened in 1984. With a population capacity of 800, TRU houses both minimum and medium security levels. The Washington State Sex Offender Treatment and Assessment Program is located at TRU, and those participating in the program are housed there. A 2021 report found report that temperatures of window coverings in sunlight at the facility could reach as high as 98 degrees. That year, the Center was repeatedly under quarantine to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. WSR-Minimum Security Unit (MSU) - Opened in 1997, the Washington State Reformatory-Minimum Security Unit has a capacity of 470. The MSU has a program housing Mentally Ill Offenders that allows them to transfer to minimum from other security levels. This program is the only one in the state. MSU houses Offenders with less than 6 years to serve. Intensive Management Unit (IMU) - Opened in 2007, the IMU being Violator Unit and Intensive Management System (IMS) has a capacity of 200+, 100+ of that being designated for probation violators. The IMS houses Offenders that are difficult to manage or are a threat to others.


History

The Washington State Reformatory opened in 1910, making it the second oldest operational prison in Washington state, behind the
Washington State Penitentiary Washington State Penitentiary (also called the Walla Walla State Penitentiary) is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the second largest priso ...
. The next facility opened was the Special Offender Unit in 1980. In 1984 the Twin Rivers Corrections Center was opened. It is now known as the Twin Rivers Unit. In 1997 the Minimum Security Unit was opened. In 2007 the Intensive management unit was opened. During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, the Monroe complex had eleven positive cases—five staff and six inmates in the same minimum security unit. Over 100 prisoners at the complex rioted on April 8 in response to the outbreak, but were broken up by corrections officers using crowd control tactics and an evacuation of housing units. The following day, Governor Inslee announced plans to release nonviolent offenders and at-risk inmates to lower the risk of infection.


Line of Duty Deaths

The Monroe Correctional Complex has experienced 3 Line of Duty Deaths while operational. Benjamin Marshall: Power Plant Engineer died on April 26, 1951, at the Washington State Reformatory. Marshall was working as a night shift engineer at the facility when two inmates wounded him during an escape attempt. Both inmates, Robert R. Johnson and Luther J. Moore, were found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison for the murder. Jayme Beindl: On January 29, 2011, Officer Jayme Biendl was strangled to death with an amplifying cord by an inmate within prison walls. Inmate Byron Scherf was accused of the murder. Officer Biendl had repeatedly filed work orders for additional security measures to her supervisors which went unanswered. Inmate Byron Scherf was found guilty of the murder of Officer Biendl and sentenced to death. However, when Governor Jay Inslee was elected into office he placed a moratorium in favor of on all inmates on death row. Berisford Morse: 65 years of age, died on May 17, 2020 from complications related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Officer Morse was a 16-year veteran of the Department, most all of which was served at the Monroe Correctional Complex.


Popular culture

* The prison scenes in ''
The Butterfly Effect ''The Butterfly Effect'' is a 2004 American science fiction thriller film written and directed by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber. It stars Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart, Eric Stoltz, William Lee Scott, Elden Henson, Logan Lerman, Ethan Su ...
'' were filmed at the Washington State Reformatory.


Notable inmates

* James Fogle, author of ''Drugstore Cowboy'', the novel on which the film of the same name was based *Michael Tarbert, Spokane murderer known for killing 12-year-old Rebecca West and 11-year-old Nicki Wood in 1991. * Glen Sebastian Burns, Canadian murderer known for killing Atif Rafay's family in 1994. * Atif Rafay, Canadian murderer known for killing his family with Glen Sebastian Burns in 1994. *Brian Bassett, McCleary murderer known for killing his parents and younger brother in 1995. *Terence "Terry" Weaver, Blaine murderer known for killing Kelli Scott in 1996. *Guy Rasmussen, Lakewood murderer known for killing 9-year-old Cindy Allinger in 1996. *David Anderson, Bellevue murderer known for the Bellevue murders in 1997. *David Dodge, Stanwood murderer known for killing 12-year-old Ashley Jones in 1997. *Isaac Zamora, perpetrator of the
2008 Skagit County shootings On September 2, 2008, 28-year-old Isaac Zamora killed six people (including one sheriff's deputy) and wounded two more on a shooting rampage in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The incident began when Skagit County Sheriff's Deputy Anne ...
. * Gary Grant, killed 4 people between 1969-1971. * Aaron Ybarra, perpetrator of the 2014 Otto Miller Hall shooting.


See also

*
List of law enforcement agencies in Washington (state) This is a list of law enforcement agencies in the United States, US state of Washington (U.S. state), Washington. According to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics' 2008 ''Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies,'' the state had 260 l ...
*
List of United States state correction agencies This is a list of corrections agencies in the U.S. state, states of the United States. State adult prison agencies * Alabama Department of Corrections * Alaska Department of Corrections * Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Ree ...
* List of U.S. state prisons *
List of Washington state prisons This is a list of state prisons in Washington housing adult inmates administered by the Washington State Department of Corrections (WADOC).


References


External links


MCC page at Washington Department of Corrections website
{{Authority control Prisons in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Snohomish County, Washington Monroe, Washington 1910 establishments in Washington (state)