Supporters of the hunger strike in the supermax unit at Ohio State Penitentiary rallied in Columbus Tuesday, April 14, calling upon prisons director Gary Mohr to order the restoration of the inmates' constitutionally protected recreation and religious rights.  Those rights had been taken away as collective punishment for the misdeeds of one prisoner.

   The month-long hunger strike in the supermax unit at Ohio State Penitentiary largely ended the next day, after attorneys Alice Lynd and Staughton Lynd, and one of the strikers negotiated with the warden. The prison reportedly agreed to some of the demands of the strikers – changing policies for phone calls and restoring religious services. The demand for rescinding a new restrictive recreation policy, however, was not met. Officials denied a “negotiated settlement.” The hunger strike started with more than 30 prisoners; until Wednesday, five were still refusing meals, all of whom had lost 20 to 30 pounds in the course of the strike and some experienced medical problems.  One of the five continues to strike, over concerns not yet made public.