Wife of Wallens Ridge inmate blames ‘inhumane’ lockdowns for Sunday murder

There appears to be more to the story of the murder of an inmate at Wallens Ridge State Prison in Big Stone Gap that we need to share.

The wife of an inmate wrote to let us know about “inhumane” conditions in the prison, a Level 5 state prison – a supermax – housing approximately 1,200 inmates.

“The prison has been on lockdown multiple times over the past few months. The lockdowns are inhumane. They are confined to their cells for days at a time. Which some could argue that this man’s death was caused in part by these lockdowns. Could you imagine being locked in a small room with limited items & another man that you may not necessarily get along with for days or weeks at a time?” the woman wrote.

The murder of Carl Wilkins, 33, of Chesterfield, who was serving a 30-year sentence after being convicted of second-degree murder in the February 2020 stabbing death of Jamar R. Golighty, 33 on Sunday, is the second at Wallens Ridge in the past 13 months.

In September, 34-year-old Justin Crenshaw was indicted on aggravated murder and strangulation charges in connection with the Nov. 20, 2021, death of 47-year-old Gregory Pierce.

The Virginia Department of Corrections has not yet identified the alleged perpetrator in Sunday’s murder.

Conditions at Wallens Ridge were featured in a 2006 documentary, “Up the Ridge,” exploring the social impact on moving offenders to distant rural outposts.

Big Stone Gap is as far out there on the westernmost edge of Virginia as you can possibly get – three and a half hours from Roanoke, six hours from Richmond, six and a half hours from Northern Virginia, seven and a half hours from Virginia Beach.

Meaning, it can be hard enough for family to maintain contact with people on the inside as it is, given the travel difficulties.

The constant lockdowns throw everything off.

“These lockdowns are driving wedges in people’s families and relationships,” the wife of a current inmate wrote to us. “It’s hard enough with your loved one being incarcerated, but to deal with the lockdowns 1-2 times a month or sometimes back-to-back, that is ridiculous.”

The woman alleges that there have been “several overdoses and deaths” of other inmates at Wallens Ridge in the past few months that have not been reported publicly.

We will look into this and report back what we find out.