Correction Officer Robert B. Vallandingham

Robert B. Vallandingham

Correction Officer Robert Vallandingham was killed when he was strangled by inmates during a prison riot at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility.

He and several other officers had been taken hostage during the riot and had been held for four days before Officer Vallandingham was murdered. The remaining hostages were eventually freed.

Three of the inmates were sentenced to death for his murder.

Officer Vallandingham had previously served with the United States Army during the Vietnam War. He was survived by his wife and son and is buried at Greenlawn Cemetery in Portsmouth, Ohio.