The Baltimore County Detention Center was locked down and closed to visitors for more than a day this week after a fight involving a dozen inmates, county officials confirmed Friday.
Jail staff found five weapons made of ink pens in the day room where the fight occurred Monday evening, leading them to close the entire Towson facility from 7 a.m. Wednesday until about noon Thursday to search each cell, county spokeswoman Ellen Kobler said.
About 10 percent of housing units at the jail were still locked down Friday as the investigation continued, she said.
Kobler said the fight initially involved six men and eventually 12 were involved. It lasted about seven minutes. One inmate was taken to the hospital, where he got stitches in his cheek, she said. He returned to jail that night and is recovering in the medical unit.
The on-site officer recorded the situation as a "Code 3" incident, which is the code for a mass disturbance, but none of the inmates threatened staff or tried to vandalize property, Kobler said. The last time an incident was described as Code 3 was in 1993.
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