Nebraska State Penitentiary

The Nebraska State Penitentiary (NSP) is a state correctional facility for the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. Located in Lincoln, it is the oldest state correctional facility in Nebraska, opening in 1869. Until after World War I, it was the only adult correctional facility in the state. The NSP has been accredited by the American Correctional Association since 1985.

Nebraska State Penitentiary

Aerial view of the prison in 2022
Location	4201 S 14th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S.
Status	Open
Security class	Mixed
Capacity	Over 1300
Opened	1869
Managed by	Nebraska Department of Correctional Services

History

The Nebraska State Penitentiary was announced in 1867 from a bill that appropriated $40,000 to build a prison for the state. The prison was originally meant to be built in Bellevue. However, plans were changed to move it to Lincoln.^[1] The prison opened in 1869.^[2] The prison originally opened with temporary buildings before the construction of permanent buildings in the early to mid-1970s.^[3] The prison was expanded in 1890, adding a 240 cell-building to the facility.^[4]

In 1948 and 1955, two riots occurred inside of the facility, causing minor injuries, and requiring repairs or buildings to be partially demolished.^[5] In 1979, it was announced that the second-oldest prison building, built in 1876, would be demolished. Additionally, new, "double-y," shaped buildings would be built in its place. The new facilities would be designed by Leo A. Daly, and construction began later that year.^[6]

Due to the buildings historical value, attempts were made to keep some of the building.^[3] Construction was completed in 1981, and the former cellblock was demolished in its entirety by 1982.^[7] In 1998, two 100-bed modular housing units were added to the facility.^[8]

In 2015, the death penalty was abolished in the State of Nebraska. The death penalty had been used in the Nebraska State Penitentiary since 1903.^[9] However, in 2016, these measures were repealed, allowing for execution to continue.^[10] In 2021, a minimum security 100-bed dormitory opened.^[11] In 2024, nearly 400 prisoners were displaced due to severe weather in Lincoln.^[12] Additionally, two buildings had extensive roof damage.^[13]

In 2021, the Nebraska State Legislature proposed building a new prison in a then-undetermined location.^[14] In August 2023, the Nebraska Department of Corrections purchased a 300 acre parcel north of Lincoln^[15] on which a new 1,512 capacity multi-custody replacement facility for the penitentiary will be constructed.^[16]

While the replacement facility was intended to begin construction in late 2024, the project had gone over budget and had other financial difficulties. Hausmann Construction was chosen to develop the site in June 2025, and construction began in July. The prison is expected to be substantially completed by August 2028.^[17]

Criticism

The Nebraska State Penitentiary has received extensive criticism, from reports of overcrowding, poor medical care, and has received several wrongful death lawsuits.^[18] The prison has allegedly surpassed Alabama for being the most overcrowded prison. As of 2022, it has been operating at 151% of its total capacity.^[19] The prison has also received criticism for double-bunking inmates in restrictive housing, which was blamed for the 2017 killing of a 22 year old inmate.^[20]

Notable inmates

• Vince Champ, convicted sex offender and former comedian.
• George Contant, brother of John Sontag, often called collectively The Sontag Brothers, imprisoned for theft; later sent to Folsom State Prison in California for train robbery.
• Nikko Jenkins, spree killer; currently sits on death row.
• John Joubert, serial killer; executed in 1996.
• Carey Dean Moore, executed in 2018.
• Harold Lamont Otey, executed in 1994; first person executed in Nebraska since 1959.
• Charles Starkweather, Nebraska 1958 spree killer, sentenced to death; executed in the prison's electric chair on June 25, 1959.
• William Leslie Arnold, at 16 years old murdered his parents in 1958 and was sentenced to life. In 1967, Arnold and another inmate escaped the penitentiary. While the other inmate was eventually recaptured, Arnold remained a fugitive until his death in 2010, where in 2022 DNA evidence found him to be living as John Damon in Australia.
• Duane Earl Pope, serving a life sentence for the violent 1965 robbery of the Farmers State Bank in Big Springs, Nebraska, in which three people were murdered and one was left severely injured.
• Robert E. Williams, spree killer; executed in 1997.