WHITE RIVER JUNCTION — Three inmates accused of an “attempted takeover” at Southern State Correctional Facility in November have been arraigned.

Two of the inmates, Arthur Crandall, 43, and Logan Wheeler, 32, each pleaded guilty to one count of simple assault in Windsor Superior Court on Jan 7. Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Mann added 59 or 60 days to each of their current sentences for the plea.

A third inmate, Dakota Gardner, 29, who was facing the more serious charges of two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, pleaded not guilty to both counts during his arraignment on Jan. 2. If convicted, he could face up to 16 additional years in prison.

The charges stem from an incident at the Springfield, Vt., facility on Nov. 19, according to an affidavit written by Vermont State Police Detective Trooper Christopher Blais.

Around 10 a.m. a fight broke out between Crandall, Wheeler and a third inmate, which prison officials called a “coordinated attack,” according to the affidavit. Corrections officer George Neathawk, who was working nearby, told police he was distracted by the fight when Gardner hit him with a sock filled with soap bars. The two struggled and Gardner stabbed Neathawk in the head with a shank made from plexiglass and tape, according to the affidavit.

The fight stopped when another corrections officer stepped in and used pepper spray on Wheeler, Crandall and Gardner.

In a news release put out following the incident, Vermont State Police called the attacks an “attempted takeover” of the prison unit.

All three inmates were moved to other correctional facilities in Vermont after the assaults.

Crandall, who is serving 10 to 20 years for aggravated domestic assault, is now facing a release date as early as January 2027. Wheeler, who is serving five to 10 years for burglary and domestic assault, had his earliest release date pushed back to April 2021.

Gardner is serving a minimum of five years for aggravated assault. According to a docket filed in Windsor Superior Court following the new charges, Gardner has a history of violent behavior, including a 2013 federal conviction for threatening to kill the president of the United States.

Anna Merriman can be reached at amerriman@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.