Man held in Philly prison beaten by another incarcerated man

A 40-year-old man incarcerated at the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center was beaten by another prisoner over the weekend, leaving him with a broken orbital bone and a broken jaw, prison records show.

Shawn Mays, his hands and feet bound with a bedsheet, was pummeled by another prisoner shortly before 6:30 a.m. Sunday inside a cell, according to internal records. He was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for head trauma, damage to his eye socket, and broken ribs and had to have part of his jaw wired shut, the records show.

It could not be learned whether the man who assaulted Mays would face discipline or other consequences in connection with the assault.

Officials at the Philadelphia Department of Prisons declined to comment on the incident. A spokesperson for the police department did not return a request for comment, and officials at the district attorney’s office referred questions to the prisons department.

The attack on Mays, who was awaiting trial on gun and assault charges, comes at a time when city prisons are grappling with what advocates describe as dangerous conditions for prisoners.

Noah Barth, prison monitoring director for the Pennsylvania Prison Society, said incarcerated men at city prisons frequently report witnessing fights behind bars and many say they do not feel safe.

Philadelphia prisons have long been under scrutiny for what advocates have described as inhumane conditions inside the facilities. Last year, a federal judge found the city in contempt of a 2022 settlement agreement in a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of incarcerated people. And in August, Philadelphia was found in contempt of the agreement and ordered to pay $25 million to remedy conditions.

In May, Philadelphia voters approved the creation of a prison oversight board to monitor the city’s correctional facilities and recommend reform.

Staff writer Samantha Melamed contributed to this article.