Pollock Inmates Beat Rival, Land in Court

Three men behind bars at the U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock, Louisiana, are now facing federal sentencing after admitting they orchestrated a brutal assault on a fellow inmate in 2015. Jason Dwight Mackenzie, 35; Robert Shipp Jr., 32; and Calvin Skelton, 42, pleaded guilty to one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury, marking the end of a federal probe into the savage beating.

The attack unfolded on October 21, 2015, inside the prison’s cell block, where the victim was reading a newspaper. Without warning, Mackenzie, Shipp, and Skelton pounced, knocking the man to the ground before raining down punches and kicks to his head, torso, and legs. Witnesses described the attackers as relentless—continuing the assault until they appeared exhausted.

Only when a guard approached did the trio break off and retreat to their cells. The victim, left bloodied and unconscious, was dragged to the prison infirmary before being rushed to a hospital. There, doctors performed multiple surgeries to repair the severe internal and external trauma caused by the beating.

U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley confirmed the guilty pleas, entered Friday before U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell in Alexandria, Louisiana. The case was investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, underscoring the federal stakes when violence erupts within the nation’s high-security facilities.

Each defendant now faces up to 10 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine, and one to three years of supervised release following incarceration. Sentencing is scheduled for May 26, 2017, where the court will weigh the brutality of the attack and the defendants’ criminal histories.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael O’Mara is prosecuting the case, sending a clear message that attacks on federal inmates won’t be tolerated—even behind prison walls. The conviction adds to a growing record of federal crackdowns on internal prison violence across the Bureau of Prisons system.