Philly Guard’s Pepper Spray Rampage

⏱ 3 min read

Christopher Knight, 47, a former guard at Philly’s Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, confessed today to a string of brutal attacks on inmates. Between January and March of last year, Knight systematically pepper-sprayed five already-subdued prisoners, then lied about it in official reports. The feds hit him with charges last May, but the full scope of his sadism came out during his guilty plea.

The details are sick. On January 8th, Knight unloaded pepper spray on a man face down and cuffed, continuing to blast him while securing the restraints. Two days later, another handcuffed inmate walking with a fellow guard became a target. Later that same day, a third man got a face full of spray on his way back to his cell, and Knight didn’t stop even after the cuffs were on.

It didn’t end there. March saw Knight spraying a man simply writing on a piece of paper, and then another inmate lying prone on the floor. Each time, Knight deliberately omitted key details in his use-of-force reports, attempting to justify his actions with lies. He tried to cover his tracks, but the feds didn’t buy it.

Knight’s sentencing is set for July 15th. He’s staring down a possible 90-year federal stretch. The FBI spearheaded the investigation, with the Philadelphia Department of Prisons providing support. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Priya DeSouza and Michael Miller are prosecuting the case.