Arizona inmate dies days after 'sizable' prison fight

Christopher John Wagner, 45, was pronounced dead the morning of May 2 at Dignity Health Chandler Regional Medical Center after being hospitalized in critical condition, according to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry. Wagner was injured April 26 during a fight among inmates at the Eyman complex’s Rynning Unit in Florence, and his death is being investigated as a homicide, the department said.

Two inmates remained hospitalized and were in stable condition, the department said May 2. There were about 10 inmates hospitalized as of April 28, according to Corrections Director Ryan Thornell.

Few details have been released about the incident that led to Wagner’s death, as state officials had not provided an exact number of people involved as of April 29. Thornell described it as a “sizable” fight among multiple inmates and said it did not meet the definition of a riot because staff and property were not targeted.

Correctional officers described the incident as a “full-blown riot” involving more than 100 people, said Carlos Garcia, executive director of the Arizona Correctional Peace Officers Association. Garcia added that the number of injured may be higher than the reported 10 hospitalized and said one person suffered severe brain injuries.

The incident was gang-related, beginning in a kitchen before spreading to other areas, according to Thornell. Garcia suggested the violence may be linked to higher-risk inmates being housed in lower-security units, though Thornell said those involved were placed appropriately.

Wagner was sentenced in February 2021 for offenses in Pinal County, receiving 10 years for theft of a means of transportation and 2.5 years for a dangerous drug violation, according to prison records. It was not immediately clear whether the sentences were to run consecutively or concurrently.