Guard survives Iraq, dies on job at U.S. prison

Guard survives Iraq, dies on job at U.S. prison
From Kelli Arena and Kevin Bohn
CNN

Story Highlights
Jose Rivera was stabbed to death by two inmates at a federal prison

Death raises questions about whether federal officers carry adequate protection

Union says federal prisons are overcrowded, understaffed

California state prison guards wear vests, carry batons and pepper spray



ATWATER, California (CNN) -- Jose Rivera survived two tours of duty in Iraq, but his job as a corrections officer at a high-security federal prison in California cost him his life.


Two inmates using a homemade shank are accused of stabbing Rivera to death in June at the United States Penitentiary in Atwater, California.

The inmates -- Jose Sablan, 43, and James Guerrero, 40 -- were indicted earlier in August and charged with murder. They have not yet entered a plea.

"It was two against one, you know, and no one helped him," said Rivera's grieving mother, Terry. "I didn't think that it would happen, but it was not safe for him to work there."

Rivera was 22 and had been in his job at the 960-plus inmate prison for just 10 months when he died.

He was alone guarding about 100 inmates at the time of the attack and had a radio to call for backup in case of trouble. He didn't have what many guards in California's state prisons routinely count on: pepper spray, a protective vest and a collapsible baton.
Watch how Rivera's death has ignited debate on guard security »
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http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/08/26/prison.security/index.html