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Varner Unit

High-security state prison in Arkansas

Field	Value
prison_name	Varner Unit
location	Varner, Arkansas
status	open
classification	close, maximum, super maximum
capacity	1714
opened	1987
managed_by	Arkansas Department of Corrections

The Varner Unit is a high-security state prison for men of the Arkansas Department of Corrections in Varner, Choctaw Township, unincorporated Lincoln County, Arkansas, United States. It is located along U.S. Highway 65, near Grady, and 28 mi south of Pine Bluff. The prison can house over 1,600 prisoners, and it includes a 468-bed supermax (Super Maximum Security) facility. The supermax and non-supermax facilities are separate from one another.

The Varner Unit Supermax houses male inmates scheduled for execution in Arkansas, currently performed by lethal injection. The actual executions take place at the nearby Cummins Unit. The female death row is located at the McPherson Unit. Varner is one of the state of Arkansas's "parent units" for male prisoners; it serves as one of several units of initial assignment for processed male prisoners.

History

The Varner Unit was opened in 1987 with 300 beds, and its capacity was soon increased to 700 beds. Further construction has brought the total capacity to over 1,600 prisoners. The supermax units opened in 2000, and federal grants paid 90% of the construction costs.

At one time the State of Arkansas housed all young male offenders in the state prison system in Varner. While this was the case, Correction Officers and prisoners nicknamed the facility the "Gladiator School."Parker, Allison. The rest of their lives: Life Without Parole for Child Offenders in the United States. Human Rights Watch, 2005. 75. Retrieved from Google Books on March 5, 2011. , .

On Friday August 22, 2003, all 39 Arkansas death row inmates were moved from the Maximum Security Unit to the Supermax at the Varner Unit.

In 2011, a fight among prisoners and correctional officers led to injuries among correctional officers.

During 2004/2005, ADC installed an electric fence between two non-electric fences in the Varner Unit. It received testing in late December 2004 and was activated in January 2005. The system used inmate labor to assist with the construction of the fence.

On September 11, 2025, an inmate was shot twice by a correctional officer at Varner. The spokesperson said that the inmate, who was on field duty, attempted to flee the area. A correctional officer fired two shots, striking the inmate. He was taken to a nearby hospital in an unknown condition.

Composition

The property is in Choctaw Township.

Operations

Varner houses a vegetable processing plant.

The main campus of the Riverside Vocational Technical School is located behind the Varner Unit.

Prisoner life

Education

In 2011, a campus of the Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary was established in the prison.

Notable inmates

Current

Zachary Holly: convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of Jersey Bridgeman.
Randy Gay: convicted and sentenced to death for murdering someone while having two prior convictions for murder.
Karl Roberts: convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of Andria Brewer.
Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad: perpetrator of the Little Rock recruiting office shooting.
Grant Hardin: convicted and sentenced for murder and rape, a former police chief of Gateway, Arkansas and former officer for three Northwest Arkansas area police departments. Hardin previously escaped North Central Unit prison on May 25, 2025 by disguising himself as a guard before being transferred.
Travis Eugene Posey: perpetrator of the 2024 Fordyce shooting.

Former

Death row:

Damien Echols: member of the West Memphis Three (released on August 19, 2011).

Non-death row

Jessie Misskelley: member of the West Memphis Three (released on August 19, 2011).
Jason Baldwin: member of the West Memphis Three (released on August 19, 2011).

References

"[http://www.telegram.com/article/20100929/APA/309299588 New hearing ordered for 3 in Ark. scout deaths]." ''[[Associated Press]]'' at the ''[[Worcester Telegram]]''. Wednesday September 29, 2010. Retrieved on March 5, 2011. "Damien Echols is interviewed in the visiting area of the Arkansas Department of Correction Varner Unit prison in Varner,"
Geography Division. (April 9, 2021). "2020 Census - Census Block Map: Choctaw township, AR". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
"[https://web.archive.org/web/20110628034437/http://adc.arkansas.gov/faciliities/Pages/facilityDetails.aspx?show=2 Varner Unit]." [[Arkansas Department of Correction]]. Retrieved on July 18, 2010. "28 miles south of Pine Bluff off Highway 65 in Lincoln County."
link. (2012-03-07 ." ''[[Associated Press]]'' at ''[[KAIT]]''. January 29, 2004. Retrieved on March 5, 2011. "The Varner Supermax is near Grady in Lincoln County.")
[http://www.state.ar.us/doc/history2.html History of the Arkansas Department of Correction] {{webarchive. link. (December 6, 2005)
Koon, David. "[http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2011/03/01/prison-phones-lead-to-melee Prison phones lead to melee]" ([https://web.archive.org/web/20160307065457/http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2011/03/01/prison-phones-lead-to-melee Archive]). ''[[Arkansas Times]]''. Retrieved on February 25, 2016.
"[https://web.archive.org/web/20100623011403/http://www.arkansas.gov/senate/newsroom/files/junethirteen.doc State Capitol Week in Review]" ([https://web.archive.org/web/20150923173615/http://www.arkansas.gov/senate/newsroom/files/junethirteen.doc Archive]) State of Arkansas. June 13, 2008. Retrieved on August 15, 2010. "Executions are carried out in the Cummins Unit, which is adjacent to Varner."
Haddigan, Michael. "[https://web.archive.org/web/19990508130907/http://www.arktimes.com/990409coverstory.html They Kill Women, Don't They?]" ''[[Arkansas Times]]''. April 9, 1999. Retrieved on August 15, 2010.
"[https://web.archive.org/web/20100819032000/http://www.adc.arkansas.gov/pdf/handbook.pdf Guide for Family and Friends]" ([http://web.archive.org/web/20100819032000/http://www.adc.arkansas.gov/pdf/handbook.pdf Archive]). Arkansas Department of Correction. 2 (4/27). Retrieved on July 18, 2010. " After intake, inmates are transferred to a parent unit for their initial assignment. Male inmates are assigned to the Varner, Cummins, East Arkansas, Grimes or Tucker Units."
"[http://www.adc.arkansas.gov/history_gallery.html Prison History and Gallery] {{Webarchive. link. (2011-03-10 ." [[Arkansas Department of Correction]]. Retrieved on November 22, 2010.)
"[https://web.archive.org/web/20030913131450/http://www.kait8.com/Global/story.asp?S=1417128 Death Row On The Move] ." ''[[KAIT]]''. August 26, 2003. Retrieved on August 15, 2010.
"[http://www.necn.com/03/03/11/Ark-prison-guards-hurt-during-brawl-with/landing_nation.html?&blockID=3&apID=29ba9d9915044035900fb89410a362db Ark. prison guards hurt during brawl with inmates]." ''[[NECN]]''. March 3, 2011. Retrieved on March 5, 2011.
"[https://web.archive.org/web/20221015235147/http://www.adc.arkansas.gov/pdf/newsletters/feb_advocate.pdf Third Electric Fence Installed With Inmate Labor]." ''ADC Advocate''. [[Arkansas Department of Correction]], February 2005. 3 (3/25). Retrieved on March 6, 2011.
[https://katv.com/news/local/inmate-shot-at-varner-supermax-unit-health-status-unknown Inmate shot at Varner Supermax Unit]. ''[[KATV]]''. [[Arkansas Department of Correction]], September 11, 2025.
"2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Choctaw township, AR". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
"[http://www.adc.arkansas.gov/pdf/facts_brochure2006.pdf 2006 Fact Brochure] {{Webarchive. link. (2009-08-06 ." [[Arkansas Department of Correction]]. 8 (8/38). Retrieved on March 8, 2011.)
"[http://www.riversidevtech.org/gpage.html Campuses] {{Webarchive. link. (2011-07-27 ." Riverside Vocational Technical School. Retrieved on March 6, 2011.)
Stephen Simpson, [https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2022/oct/09/prison-seminary-program-looking-to-expand-with-a/ Prison seminary program in state looking to expand with a new facility], arkansasonline.com, USA, October 9, 2022
"ADC".
"ADC".
"ADC".
"ADC".
Boyette, Zoe Sottile, Taylor Romine, Chris. (June 6, 2025). "Former Arkansas police chief who escaped from prison has been recaptured, sheriff’s office says".
Forrester, Megan. (May 27, 2025). "'Sociopath': Former Arkansas police chief sentenced for murder and rape escapes from prison".
(July 21, 2025). "Arkansas man pleads guilty in 2024 mass shooting at grocery store that killed 4".
Feyerick, Deborah and Stephanie Chen. " [http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/09/28/west.memphis.3.damien.echols/index.html?hpt=C1 Echols of West Memphis 3 talks about appeal, death row]." ''[[CNN]]''. September 29, 2010. Retrieved on September 29, 2010.
"[https://apps.ark.org/inmate_info/search.php?dcnum=000931&lastname=Echols&firstname=Damien&sex=b&agetype=1 Echols , Damien]." [[Arkansas Department of Correction]]. Retrieved on November 25, 2010.
"[https://apps.ark.org/inmate_info/search.php?dcnum=103072&firstname=Jessie&sex=M&agetype=1 Miskelly Jr , Jessie L]." [[Arkansas Department of Correction]]. Retrieved on November 25, 2010.

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